KARACHI: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Sindh on Monday instructed the Sindh government’s Cooperation Department (CD) to check the performance of the administrators of the cooperative societies to contain the menace of corruption and to facilitate the citizens from the mafia, it was learned.
According to the sources, Secretary Co-operation Department Dr Nasim-ul-Ghani Sehto on Monday visited the authority’s office and gave a detailed briefing on the functioning of the department to the NAB Director General Altaf Bawany.
The sources said that there are some 18 cooperative societies which have been taken over by the Sindh government and there are a large number of complaints about doubling of plots, the appointment of private persons as administrators of these cooperative societies.
“The Sindh government has posted well-reputed and honest officer as secretary cooperation last week who is very much optimistic to end the menace of corruption”, sources in Sindh government said while dismissing the complaints against the department.
When contacted, Secretary Cooperation Dr Nasim-ul-Ghani told Pakistan Today that he would personally visit all the cooperative societies to check the performance of the administrators. “I will try to bring positive changes in the functioning of the department besides facilitating the citizens”, the secretary added.
According to NAB’s spokesman Rizwan Soomro, the briefing was conducted at NAB office on matters related to cooperative societies that lead to the commission of offences like cheating of public at large, usurpation of state lands and deprivation of large of numbers of innocent investors of their investment, caused by ineffective regulation of such societies.
The briefing was called under preventive provisions of National Accountability Ordinance 1999 and will be followed by periodic reviews by NAB on Government’s steps of improvement.
“Briefing on details of the issues related to cooperative societies by Secretary was followed by deliberation on the causes of a large number of complaints received at NAB regarding cooperative societies and burdening of honourable courts with unnecessary litigations. It was pointed out that non-availability of data regarding societies, delays in the appointment of administrators, absence of criteria for appointing administers, delays in the election for selecting the managing committees and poor management of records and manual maintenance etc. were identified as the main constraints that are responsible for seriously affecting the performance of the department”, spokesman added.
“NAB called upon authorities to take concrete measures to hold timely elections and appointment of administrators and conduct of annual audits of societies. It was mutually decided that the department will conduct the detailed study and recommend changes in the rules and procedures related to the housing societies to fill the gaps that otherwise lead to corruption. It was emphasised that poor regulation of cooperative societies has been a major cause of depriving poor segments of society of their hard earned money, which calls for a serious intervention by the Government”, Rizwan Soomro said.
NAB handed over to the secretary an advice for the public published by NAB Rawalpindi for guidance and inclusion in the study of recommendations and for dissemination.