ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has decided to summon the former chairman of National High Authority (NHA), Shahid Ashraf Tarar, and contractors of the Karachi-Lahore Motorway Abdul Hakeem section to investigate alleged corruption of Rs24 billion in the award of contract for Rs148 billion for building motorway in August 2015, according to sources.

“The bureau will summon the former chairman of NHA, who is now representing Pakistan as the executive director of the World Bank for next three years,” a senior official of NAB told Dawn on Sunday.

He said that NAB had started inquiry into alleged irregularities in the project which will be linked with China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), M-4 (Pindi Bhattian-Gojra-Shorkot-Khanewal and Multan Motorway sections).

The official said that the inquiry against officers concerned of the NHA had been started on the basis of a complaint of the Transparency International (TI) and some evidence collected by NAB during a Complaint Verification (CV) process.

“We started inquiry into the Karachi-Lahore section of Motorway project after we found some evidences during the CV process,” the official claimed.

The official said that the inquiry had been ordered against the NHA management for their alleged corruption in awarding the contract in violation of laid-down laws/rules on exorbitant rates and causing alleged loss of billions of rupees to the national exchequer.

Interestingly, the Transparency International (TI) had lodged the complaint of alleged corruption in the project two years ago, but the former chairman of NAB, Qamar Zaman Chaudhry, who was reportedly quite close to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, did not take any action, but incumbent NAB chairman retired Justice Javed Iqbal had taken a serious notice of the issue and ordered an inquiry into the matter.

“If some credible evidences are found during the investigation, it will be a fit case for filing another reference against the present government,” the official said.

According to details, the NHA awarded Rs148 billion contract of 230-kilometre Karachi-Lahore Abdul Hakeem section of Motorway in August 2015, ignoring shortcomings in the successful bid.

When contacted, a NAB spokesman said that the bureau’s chairman had ordered an inquiry into the matter.

In reply to a question about summoning of the former NHA chairman and contractors, the spokesman said: “NAB does not believe in victimisation of anybody and merit will prevail in the case.” He said the NAB chairman had ordered the director-general of the bureau, Rawalpindi, to investigate allegations of corruption in the award of the contract.

“NAB will ensure that the public money is not wasted or misused and the people responsible for awarding the contract of Karachi-Lahore section of the Motorway on higher rates in violation of rules and regulations, are exposed and brought to justice.

Interestingly, the Frontier Works’ Organisation (FWO) was not allowed to participate in the bidding process by the NHA management on the ground that it (the FWO) was already engaged in several other massive projects and thus overstretched and overburdened though it submitted the lowest bid of Rs134 billion (Rs14 billion less than the accepted bid of Rs148 billion).

Some of the bidders have lodged complaints with the NHA that the successful bidder had reduced quantities and work materials amounting to Rs10 billion without reducing the cost of the project and that will cause extra burden of Rs10 billion to the national exchequer.

Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2018