The government departments are in a fix, each passing the buck on the other, for getting the “missing” household items worth millions of rupees recovered from former Punjab chief minister Dost Muhammad Khan Khosa, Pakistan Today has learnt.
Senior officials from at least three government departments including the Communication and Works (C&W) department, the Implementation and Coordination (I&C) department and the welfare and cabinet wings of the Services and General Administration Department (S&GAD) have been in the “loop” for settling the issue by either getting the missing items recovered or get an equal amount of money from the former CM.
Sources privy to the development revealed that a high-level meeting was recently held under the Secretary I&C to decide the departmental jurisdiction of the matter. They further told that officials from the C&W department admitted that the matter falls in their jurisdiction under the rules and the cabinet and welfare wings have nothing to do with it. However, despite admitting to take up the matter, the C&W high ups have taken no step so far.
According to details, Dost Khosa was living in house no. 12-Aikman Road in Government Officers’ residence (GOR-I) when he became the chief minister. The Communication and Works (C&W) Department renovated the house.
A senior official, on the condition of anonymity, said the matter came to light when a XEN of the C&W department conducted the routine visit at the said house to maintain the inventory of government residences after Khosa had vacated the house. The XEN estimated household items to the tune of Rs 4million ‘missing’ from the spot.
The matter came to light a few months ago, while so far the government departments are only passing the buck on each other to “avoid” contacting an important political personality.
A senior government official further said the only two ways available is to either get the items recovered or get an equal amount from Khosa. He said the issue is of utmost importance for the politicians who have to get ‘clearance’ from the government before going into the upcoming general elections. He further said the issue could also cause a rift within the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
Talking to Pakistan Today, Dost’s father and senior PML-N leader Senator Zulfiqar Khosa said the department’s estimate of Rs 4million has no backing in the rules which allow a maximum of Rs 1million that can be spent on a minister’s house. To a question, he said he was neither the CM nor lived in the house, hence any further comment on the issue should come from Dost Khosa, who was not available for comments.
However, C&W Special Secretary Capt (r) Asad Ullah Khan said Dost Khosa had submitted he will pay the amount but under ‘protest’ a few months back. “Since then no progress has been made on the issue and we are trying to sort out the matter, which actually falls under the purview of the I&C secretary,” he said, adding that the amount is less than Rs4million.
An I&C official however said the matter has been settled among the departments and the C&W had agreed it falls under their purview. Officials from the Welfare and Cabinet wings also said the C&W will take up the matter.
Who will bell the cat?
