The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) urged the federal and provincial governments to ensure accountability at all levels and organise anti-corruption drive to curb deep-rooted corruption in society, institutions and the community at large.
UNISAME President Zulfikar Thaver speaking as a representative of United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) at a local club said it is appreciated that the ruling parties at the centre and the provinces are now determined to curb corruption, protect human rights, provide environment and make life easy for the labourers.
These he said are the basic principles of the UNGC and it is the endeavour of UNGC to promote the war against corruption which is the root cause of all the troubles in society.
Thaver said it is very important that the process of accountability is strengthened and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) is given the task and the teeth to carry out its job without fear or favour.
NAB should not spare anyone the big or small, the highly influential or the ordinary. Besides NAB the anti-corruption department also needs to gear up and not spare the corrupt elements.
He pointed out that there is hardly any department which is free from corruption.
The patients at the government owned free hospitals are getting substandard medicines due to huge amounts withdrawn for payment of fake bills, the prisoners in jails not getting sufficient food as money is pocketed by the jailers, the animals in the zoo are dying because the zoo officials are taking their food to their own houses.The free schools have become ghost schools and exist only on paper.
The officials and contractors in connivance are looting the government by presenting fictitious bills for jobs not done at all or done superficially. The public sector organizations are running in losses due to corruption.
It will not be possible for NAB to take on this menace in all the departments at the same time but efforts must be made to cleanse them one by one and a complaint cell should be set up and the victims be allowed to submit their complaints and their names be kept secret to protect them.
The citizens must make it a point to lodge complaints against the clerks or officers who demand illegal gratification.
The volunteers of UNISAME said corruption is spreading fast and needs to be checked immediately and they urged the ministers to carry out surprise raids and visits to the departments under them. The volunteers have urged the Transparency International of Pakistan (TIP) to receive online complaints and pursue the matter vigorously. They said most of the departments have fixed rates for the out of the way work done by them and most of the departments are charging speed money for bonafide jobs also. The public is finding it very difficult to pay extra money as they are already burdened by heavy taxes, fees and charges and the high inflation and have no money to give bribes or so called gifts or speed money.
They said since the police officers have to pay for their placement at important stations where there is handsome income and likewise all important positions are purchased in several other institutions. The amounts paid for placements are then recovered by taking bribes from the applicants for various nature of work to be performed.
They pointed out that the vigilance departments are allowing adulteration, making of counterfeits, fake goods and several officers are on the payroll in schools, hospitals and departments but not attending their duties and pay their in-charge on a monthly basis for remaining absent.
The union thanked the UNGC for supporting their cause and assured full support to invigorate the anti-corruption drive of the body.
