ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz was summoned on Saturday by the sub-committee of the Senate Standing Committee on Social Welfare to appear on August 23 to explain embezzlement of funds allocated for Tawana Pakistan programme.

The three-member sub-committee, which met under the chairmanship of Senator Muhammad Enver Baig at the Parliament House, examined in detail the audit report on the programme.

The panel decided that Shaukat Aziz, who was also finance minister, must explain the irregularities pinpointed in the report. The sub-committee also summoned two former social welfare and special education ministers, Dr. Attiya Inayatullah and Zobaida Jalal, former social welfare secretary Naeem Khan, former chairman planning commission Akram Sheikh, former managing director Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal Brig (retd) Muhammad Sarfraz, head of Tawana Pakistan project Irfan Ullah Khan, former employee Shaiza Mughees former and representatives of National Bank of Pakistan, PIMS Branch, Vita Company and Maza Company on August 23 over misuse of funds and violation of rules.

Sub-committee chairman Senator Enver Baig, talking to reporters, said “massive misappropriation” of funds had taken place in a project meant for welfare of the poor school-going girls. “Those responsible will be dealt with under the law,” the senator said.

Director General Bail-ul-Mal Zumarad Khan said it was a “big financial scandal” and those responsible must be taken to task. The head of the project sent a medical certificate for not attending the meeting. The meeting was informed in the past he left the country when he was called by the committee in connection with the audit report.

The sub-committee decided to ask the ministry of Interior to put Irfan Ullah’s name on Exit Control List. The meeting was informed that Tawana Pakistan project was launched by the Social Welfare and Special Education Ministry in 2002 to provide cooked meal daily to 530,000 girl students of 5300 primary schools at a cost of Rs. 36 million for 54 month.

The objective was to improve education and health of rural girls in the far flung areas of the country. The Social Welfare Ministry had been implementing the project through Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal, the Aga Khan Foundation and 11 NGOs in close collaboration with the district governments.

Officials of the ministry told the meeting that the project was launched in 2002 without approval of its PC-I by ECNEC, which raised various questions about its execution. The committee was told that the monitoring and evaluation of the project was not done which was necessary after stipulated time period to improve the fund disbursement mechanism and verification of beneficiaries.

The meeting was informed that during a surprise visit, an official team found expired medicines and substandard food being given to the students. The ECNEC suspended the project in 2005 and directed that its PC-I be prepared.

However, the ministry on the directives of then social welfare minister re-launched the project in March 2007 without approval and the frozen amount of Rs. 571 million of the programme was also released from Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal to the ministry.

The committee was told that the project was once again suspended in November 2007 by former secretary Rasool Buksh Baloch because of the alleged misuse of funds. The ministry spent over Rs. 600 million out of which more than Rs. 420 million were used on administrative expenses but the proper record about it was not available with the ministry.

Former secretary Rasool Buksh Baloch told the committee that he and his family had “received life threats for suspending the project and ordering an inquiry in last November”. According to audit report mineral water worth Rs. 3.6 million was consumed during a period of nine months in 2007 by the then minister for social welfare.

Project employee Shaiza Mughees was appointed at a salary of Rs 5,000 per month but after two months her salary was raised to Rs. 40,000 and later the ministry paid her advance salaries amounting to Rs 7.3 million and she quit the job, the report says.

Senators Dr. Khaild Mehmood Soomro, Shuja-ul-Mulk and senior officials of the social welfare ministry and Director General Bait-ul-Mal Zumarad Khan attended the meeting. nni
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