–Former Punjab CM to be questioned about ‘revelations’ made by top bureaucrat Fawad Hassan Fawad
LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has summoned former Punjab chief minister and president of the PML-N, Shehbaz Sharif to appear before a combined investigation team (CIT) on August 20 in the Rs14 billion Ashiana-i-Iqbal Housing and Punjab Power Development Company Limited (PPDCL) scams.
Shehbaz had already appeared before the CIT of NAB Lahore, whereas former Lahore Development Authority (LDA) director general Ahad Cheema is in police custody on judicial remand for allegedly misusing his authority and approving a fraudulent and illegal request by awarding contract of the Ashiana project.
Last month, the accountability bureau had arrested former principal secretary to the prime minister, Fawad Hassan Fawad in various corruption references filed against him, including the Ashiana project. According to reports, NAB wants to interrogate Shehbaz about the revelations made by Fawad.
According to NAB officials, Fawad had awarded a contract to ‘favourites’, illegally ordered the shifting of nine CNG stations and worked in a private bank from 2005 to 2006 without an official permission, terming these as “sheer violations of rules”.
The official further claimed that Fawad had acquired six mobile medical units, being the provincial health secretary, at higher costs than market.
Fawad, who served as the principal secretary of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, was transferred from his post on June 1 to serve as the director general of the Civil Services Academy in Lahore.
Besides, the accused bureaucrat was also being probed by NAB officials for possession of assets beyond known sources of income.
According to NAB officials, Shahbaz had cancelled the award of the project’s contract to the successful bidder M/S Chaudhry Latif and Sons and instead granted it to M/S Lahore Casa Developers (JV) – a proxy group of M/S Paragon City (Pvt) Limited (which was stated to be developed by the former railways minister Saad Rafique) – thus causing a loss of millions of rupees to the exchequer.
Fawad, who served as the secretary of Shehbaz at that time, aided the contract to be awarded to Casa Developers.