Why ISI was not paid from defence budget? It is a shame that certain organizations in Pakistan are above any accountability perhaps is the root cause of corruption in Pakistan. Unless some form of mechanism is estabilished to account for such huge ammounts, the saga of corruption will continue with in no end in future. Blaming only politicians is just another way of diverting real problem of corruption.
PAC denied information about Rs5.5bn paid to ISI
By Khawar Ghumman
**ISLAMABAD: Eyebrows were raised on Tuesday when finance officials informed the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the National Assembly about an unaccounted-for, one-time release of Rs5.55 billion to Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) during 2007-08 for its operations. **
When pressed for details, Finance Secretary Salman Siddique opted to keep quiet. “This is highly sensitive information and hence I can’t talk about it at an open forum.”
According to information provided by the finance division to the PAC, the amount was paid to the ISI as a supplementary grant.
Despite repeated questions and light-hearted taunts by members of the committee, Mr Siddique refused to share any details.
**Details provided to media-persons simply described the amount as “provision for relief during the financial year 2007-2008”. The only thing the secretary was willing to concede was that the head was a cover-up. **
Khwaja Asif of the PML-N asked: “How long shall we keep on fooling ourselves?”
**PPP’s Yasmin Rehman, who presided over the meeting, said: “How can we settle such a heavy amount without knowing any details?” If the information was not to be shared with the PAC there was no need to bring the matter to the notice of the members, she said. **
Afzal Chan of the PPP said the funding for intelligence agencies was beyond anyone’s comprehension.
**PAC Chairman Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan did not attend the meeting.In reply to a question, the finance secretary said strategic dictates had forced the government to make the payment. He also said that the money had been provided in lump sum. **
**PENSIONS: The issue of pensions of retired army personnel also came under discussion. The payment was shown as civilian expenditure under a government decision taken in 2001. **
**During the current financial year, the secretary said, the government would spend Rs72 billion on paying pension to former personnel of the armed forces and only Rs18 billion to retired civilian employees. **
Khwaja Asif called the decision a joke and urged the government to immediately undo it because it was a legacy of a military dictator.
