REFERENCE / COMPLAINT NO. XIII

Reference dated 6-8-2002 – Misuse of Secret Funds – Ministry of Information

August 6, 2002

Lieutenant General Munir Hafeez
Chairman
National Accountability Bureau
Chief Executive Secretariat
Islamabad

Dear General Munir Hafeez

On behalf of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) I am filing a corruption complaint for the misuse of funds for the Ministry of Information in the use of secret service funds. I bring to your notice a news item published in THE NEWS on 28 July 2002 by Rauf Klasra (copy of news clipping enclosed ) that confirm the said abuse of office by the Secretary Information before the PAC.

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is highly concerned that rampant corruption is taking place under the present military regime. A series of complaints by us over three years have been ignored. Shockingly one hundred million dollars belonging to the working class employees was stolen from the Ministry of Labour. I refer to the Pension funds in the EOBI. Now the diversion of funds under use of secret funds by the Ministry is evidence of bribery and corruption by the state to get distorted stories printed against its political rivals. The Nation has a right to know the names of the journalists who received the sums and the articles that they wrote in that connection.

Governments do hire press people as consultants and pay them openly and transparently so that there is a legality. The secret payment of funds is odious and it smells of corruption. It is the job of the NAB to avoid abusing its own office by investigating cases of corruption honestly. I am afraid NAB is still to rise above an institution more than a politically motivated vehicle to attain political objectives of regimes that lack popular support.

The Pakistan Peoples Party is of the view that after the publication of the report the National Accountability Bureau should have taken suo moto notice to investigate government’s efforts to hire journalists. The public has the right to know which news items are published on behalf of the government and which journalists are paid out of Ministry of Information secret funds. They cannot be denied the information on the basis of secrecy about the utilization of public funds.

It is hoped that NAB under your leadership would investigate the matter regarding doling out huge sums of money to the journalists, writers and columnists and the outcome of the investigation will be made public.

As a serving military officer, you, General Munir, can change the culture. It may be a difficult job to do so. It may require courage and integrity. I pray that Allah may bless you with these qualities so that you can respond to the aspirations of the people of the country and make a mark with acts of truth, courage and valour. This is what is needed and its time all Pakistanis stopped cowering under illegal orders by a corrupt mafia bent on destroying the Constitution for its own personal advancement.

Sincerely,

Nayyer Bokhari, Advocate
On behalf of Pakistan Peoples Party


The Reference / Complaint is based on the source incorporated as under :

Existence of secret fund in Information Ministry Admitted

THE NEWS dated 28 July, 2002

By Rauf Klasra

ISLAMABAD: The government for the first time officially confirmed to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Saturday that a 'secret fund' exits in the Ministry of Information to dole out heavy amounts to different writers, columnists, journalists and others to conduct 'research' where needed and write in favour of government policies.

It was also confirmed to the PAC that a sum of Rs15million given by the exiled premier Nawaz Sharif to the Islamabad Policy Research was actually deposited in the 'secret fund' by the then bosses of the Information Ministry for the purpose of distribution among its favourites journalists. The Ministry however refused to get the big amount audited on the pretext that the 'secret fund' could not be audited by any agency.


Earlier, the Public Accounts Committee took up the audit reports of the Ministry of Information with regard to payments to journalists from the secret fund, establishment of workers welfare fund and other issues pertaining to PTV.

PAC chairman HU Beg, presided the committee meeting, which was attended by General Talat Masoud, Shaukat Kazmi, Akmul Ahad and Muzaffar Ahmad.

Mohammad Younis Khan, Auditor General of Pakistan, and Finance Ministry Joint Secretary Nasrul Aziz also attended the meeting.

Anwar Mahmood, Secretary Information, and MD PTV Mirza Yousaf Beg were in the meeting to defend the expenditures in their ministry and corporation.

A long debate ensued in the PAC when it was pointed out by the audit that the Information Ministry had refused to provide details of Rs15million given to it for the establishment of IPRI but diverted into the Information Ministry 'secret fund'.

The PAC also took a serious note of payment of Rs25million to some influential people by the Information Ministry in the name of honouring those associated with the Pakistan Freedom Movement without laying down any rules and procedure. Till date, no one knows the fate of the money that was not deposited in a nationalised bank as per the government policy.

The audit said that it does not know the use of the fund and it asked the PAC to direct the Ministry of Information to arrange the required documents so that a proper audit could be conducted to determine whether the money was utilised accordingly or not.

Mr. Beg said anyone who utilises the government money must give details of expenditures and no one should take cover behind any excuse.

General Talat said there was a strong possibility that the funds might have been utilised somewhere else and now the Information Ministry is not divulging information under one pretext or the other. He wondered how could one NGO or trust be given so much money for the old workers of Pakistan movement and how could one determine that they were the genuine people who had participated in the Pakistan Movement. Shaukat Kazmi said it was a serious issue and no lame excuse should be entertained.

Anwar Mahmood however tried to defend dolling out of Rs25million.

The PAC directed the Ministry of information to collect al the required information from the concerned trust and its members and hand over the same for their audit.

Earlier, a long debate took place on the issue of audit of secret funds and the money given to journalists by the Ministry of Information to arrange pro government coverage in newspapers. The Secretary Information maintained that if the Audit was allowed to have an access to the documents of this fund, it would create problems and so they should not be authorised to do so. But, the Audit was of the view that when the amount was released for Islamabad Policy Research institute by the Ministry of Finance, it was never stated that it was meant for a secret fund. However, when the cheque was issued it was deposited by the Information Ministry in the secret account.

General Talat said he failed to understand what kind of secrecy it is to keep the public in the dark with regard to the use of public money. He said if the government had paid certain amounts to some journalist or columnists or researchers for the promotion of its policies, why the information ministry does not come up with any justification for the use of money in question.

However after all the arguments and counter arguments, the ever wavering PAC, the vulnerable audit officials and intelligent Information Ministry found a middle way to keep the taxpayers in the dark from knowing the use of their money by agreeing to keep alive the tradition of use of secret funds in the best "national interests". They all decided that the audit of secret fund will be done by the Auditor General of Pakistan under the law governing the rules of audit of secret funds.

And the report would not be made public, neither submitted to the PAC for debate nor the names of those people will be exposed who were reportedly paid from the government fund to write in favour of the government of the day.