Wheat damage during floods: PM orders action against officials concerned

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on the instruction of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has initiated an inquiry into the incident of damage of wheat during floods of 2022 and allowing illegal relaxation in the tender conditions.

Director FIA Sarfraz Virk Khan who is heading the inquiry has confirmed to The News that the agency is probing the matter. Hopefully the inquiry will be completed in a week or so and the report will be sent to the prime minister, he said.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed the Secretary Establishment Division to initiate strict disciplinary and criminal proceedings against officials (serving or retired) involved in the wheat fiasco during 2022 floods and those who allowed illegal relaxation in the tender conditions. The case of former MD PASSCO Capt (R) Saeed Ahmad Nawaz, (now Member CCP) may also be examined under relevant pension rules.

On July 24, the prime minister chaired a meeting to review the implementation of his previous orders on recommendations of Prime Minister’s Inspection Commission (PMIC) in the inquiry of wheat damages in Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation (Passco) and directed to initiate strict disciplinary action against those involved in this fiasco.

The PM Office has issued a letter with clear responsibilities and timelines. The official letter issued by the Prime Minister Office available with The News, further states that all ongoing inquiries, investigations, criminal proceedings against officials involved in malpractices during the wheat procurement drive shall be finalised during a week’s time. The PMO directed that DG FIA, DG IB Division and Secretary National Food Security are responsible for taking actions.

The prime minister has also assigned the Chairman Prime Minister’s Inspection Commission (PMIC) to probe the element of wheat theft on the pretext of damage of wheat during floods.

The prime minister further assigned the Secretary National Food Security (lead) and Secretary Finance and PSO to the Prime Minister to submit a comprehensive proposal for complete outsourcing of Passco operations and wheat procurement to the private sector.

The PMIC has recommended to refer the cases of former and current MD Passco to the NAB or FIA for further investigation.

The PM Office, while endorsing the recommendation, wrote to the Secretary Establishment for initiating action and framing charge sheet in consultation with Secretary National Food Security and Chairman PMIC.

However, the Secretary Establishment, Inamullah Khan Dharejo, in response to the Prime Minister Office letter containing diary no 3435 dated May 30, 2024, for initiation action against the accused officers, responded that the ex-MD, Capt (R) Saeed Ahmad Nawaz, has retired from the government service on October 21, 2023, and is no longer a civil servant; therefore, departmental proceedings cannot be initiated against him. However, the fact of the matter is that after retiring from Passco he has been appointed as a Commissioner on Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP). The News, on March 7 reported that Ex-MD PASSCO, Saeed Ahmad has not been responding to questions provided to him or showing up on scheduled hearing dates. This scribe has also reported on July 22 that the PMIC has completed its enquiry and recommended dismissal of all those involved. The recommendations have been endorsed by the PM, however, to date, no action has been initiated against Saeed Ahmed Nawaz.

The PMIC inquiry report reveals that the issue of illegal relaxation in tender conditions i.e., successful bidder will deposit 10 percent of the value of the agreement as performance money/security at the time of agreement, in the second tender, made on the direction of the then MD Passco Capt Saeed Ahmad Nawaz, as stated by the two General Managers i.e., Shahid Ibrahim and Lt Col (R) Imran Nazir need to be probed by NAB or FIA.

The inquiry led by the Chairman PMIC Brig (R) Muzaffar Ali Ranjha concluded that the financial affairs of Passco during the last five years were handled poorly. The bad governance as per the report caused enormous increase in the outstanding receivables, now swollen to Rs165 billion and the bank charges/interest payable thereon amounting to Rs38 billion, about 50 percent of which is charged to the government of Pakistan. The PMIC report has recommended the reconstitutions of the Passco Board, appointment of an efficient MD and reevaluate the need of Passco. Former MD Pasco Captain Saeed Ahmed Nawaz in his written reply said, “PASSCO under my stewardship saved entire stock exposed to torrential rains. I was never held guilty for the loss of stocks. MD is not allowed to sell any stock without permission of the Ministry. Losses occurred because the Board, Ministry and ECC failed to allow the Corporation to sell the damaged stock at the most appropriate time and price. Rest is history,” he said.