ISLAMABAD: Despite investigations of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and two top inquiry committees report in which they pinpointed 19 officials of criminal negligence and misconduct resulting billions of rupees loss to national exchequer in a project of the new Benazir Bhutto International Airport, the Civil Aviation Division failed to take any action against the officials and adopted a silence on its own report.
Even most intriguing fact that FIA also failed to register any FIR against those officials which it found involved in criminal negligence in the new Benazir Bhutto International Airport project.The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has taken up this issue and handed over this matter to its sub-committee to review the issue and why the action was not taken up.
The PAC held its meeting on Tuesday with the chair of its Chairman Syed Khursheed Shah in which the audit para relating to Civil Aviation division for the year 2013-14 was examined.The Civil Aviation Authority explained that original PC-1 of Rs36.25 billion had not catered all requirements which has since been revised to Rs87 billion due to addition of items which were not originally provided for.
The audit officials observed that the consultant prepared cost estimates on lump sum basis instead of item wise and during the execution phase, the cost of components increased drastically and it was also missing in PC-1.
Consequently, preparation of PC-1 in a non-professional manner resulted in unrealistic cost estimation with subsequent cost overruns.The government formulated the inquiry committee under Lt General Shahid Nazir, FIA and Ex-Chairman Wapda Shamsul Mulk.
The Investigation report (inquiry No 46/2013 conducted by FIA Special Investigation Unit, Islamabad) duly signed by Director General FIA, Additional Director and Assistant Director FIA held the following persons guilty of criminal negligence and misconduct:- Vikram S Sodha, who was Acting Director Project Benazir Bhutto International Airport from 16-09-2005 to 28-02-2007, Director Planning and Development Division from 23-02-2007 to 19-04-2010 and project director Benazir Bhutto International Airport from 20-01-2010 to 9-04-2012, Asif Basher Ahmed Director P&D, Roohullah Director P&D, Brig (R) Iftikhar Ali Project Director, Brig ® Bilal Hameed Project Director on contract and M Musharraf Khan Project Director and Yousaf Kamal Director Works and Development.
The FIA also recommended the criminal case against the senior officials of the project Management Consultants, M/s LBG & ECIL for mismanaging in the project, violating the PEC Act 1976, by hiding the fact that they were not civil engineers and were performing jobs which can be performed only by a Civil Engineer, showing no interest in the project despite charging exorbitant fees of Rs374 million, remaining absent from site, taking totally wrong decision against all Engineering principles, non-supervision of design consultants and non-supervision of the contractors all leading to delay in the project and raising in cost.
The design consultants of Air-side Infrastructure, M/s ADPi & NESPAK, for faulty and non-submission of designs and drawings on time, remaining absent from site and not taking interest in the project despite charging a fee of Rs388.5 million.
The design consultants of PTB, M/s CPG & ARCOP for non-submission of timely design and drawings resulting in delay in execution of the project contracts and despite charging a fee of Rs410 million, they took no interest in the project.
The FIA team obtained the list of consultants including senior officials of M/s LBG and their qualification that include Bruce A Thompson, project manager, Houn Dong Bark Dy Project Manager, Qiangsong Guan Planning Manager, Robert Fluhr Planning Engineer, Raymond Challis Dy Project Manager, Martin Conisbee Project Manager also remained Engineers representatives, James McClung who remained Engineers representative, Basrullah Jan Material Engineer but his qualification was Bachelor of Arts and Homeopathic doctor, Ghazanfar Ali Awan Civil Engineer, Atif Saeed Planning Engineer and Muhammad Zain Ikram Junior Engineer.
The FIA team in its report noted that CAA turned a blind eye to the unpardonable act of accepting unqualified staff for highly technical job.The Audit officials asked the PAC to direct the Principle Accounting officer (Secretary Aviation Division) and DG FIA to register FIR against responsible and initiate criminal proceedings.
The Audit officials told the PAC that due to improper planning and inefficient project execution resulted in cost overrun of Rs19.396 billion.
The Audit officials told the committee that PC-1 of the project New Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Islamabad was approved in March 2008 at a cost of Rs37 billion with the completion of 30 months and the financial viability is based on the assumptions that new airport would be yielding revenue (aeronautical and non-aeronautical) during 2011-12 and projects will be completed with the approved cost and time.
The Audit officials noted that the tendering process of various packages was initiated in utter disregard to the physical phasing planned in PC-1, resultantly, the project was extraordinary delayed for about two years and the project management consultant failed to perform its contractual role with regard to coordinating and execution of work on site.
Examining another audit para relating to New Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad, the audit officials told the committee that New Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad approved in March 2008 contained a provision of Rs40.8 million for cargo terminal, which was to be initiated after completion of Air-side Infrastructure and Passenger terminal but the work on cargo complex was executed through variation order valuing Rs379 million under the existing contract of Package-O1.
The Audit officials told the committee that due to excess expenditure and irregular execution of cargo terminal, national exchequer sustained a loss of Rs1.05 billion.They told the committee the steel structure work of the complex was awarded to another contractor on 2nd November, 2012 at a bid of Rs650 million through tender, against which an amount of Rs649.99 million was paid to the contractor.
The Audit officials told the committee that the authority had replied that the Prime Minister instructed to construct the cargo warehouse on an urgent basis as the president has to inaugurate it.
However, they observed that the reply was not acceptable because the prime minister had directed to complete all components of the project immediately including cargo warehouse and the management focused only on the construction of cargo building.
Secretary Aviation Division told the committee that PC-1 of the project wrongly convinced due to which the cost of New Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad was Rs37 billion but it now reached at Rs87 billion.
The PAC directed for the inquiry into that matter.
Examining another audit para, the Audit officials told the PAC that the CAA sustained a loss due to non-acceptance of highest bid and award of lesserarea to the tune of Rs123.29 million and besides non-recovery of non-utilization charges of Rs3.30 million.
Audit noted that Civil Aviation Authority invited tenders through press on 12th February 2007 to lease out land measuring 1600 sq yard at Jinnah Avenue entry point at Karachi for petrol pump and CNG station with a reserve price of Rs15,000 sq yd and in response a single bidder offered bid of Rs50,788 per sq yd against the reserved price.
The tender was scrapped with the remarks that the bidder had deposited less amount of bid security than the required amount and tender was again invited on 25th November, 2008 with reserve price of Rs30,000 per sq yard.
The Audit observed that the land was again advertised on January 25, 2010 with reserve of Rs35,000 per sq yard and in response again a single bidder quoted bid of Rs36,000 per sq yd with condition of 1000 sq yd for their requirement instead of 1600 sq yd and the authority accepted the single and conditional bid without addendum of re-tender to fetch more attractive rates and without necessary approvals by the higher authority.
