Sharks cough up Rs 543.94m to NAB in Rawalpindi region
*Thursday, January 17, 2008
By Aamir Yasin*
RAWALPINDI: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) recovered Rs 543.94 million from people accused of corruption in Rawalpindi region during 2007, NAB Rawalpindi Director General Rear Admiral Pervaiz Asghar said on Wednesday.
Asghar told reporters here that of the recovered amount, Rs 364.65 million was paid through voluntarily return and Rs 179.29 million through plea bargains.
He said 55 cases of corruption, fraud, bribery and embezzlement of public money were reported to NAB Rawalpindi last year and one of them was against a politician, 35 against government employees, four against businessmen, one against an ex-military personnel and 14 against others. He said 95 percent cases had been decided while the remaining cases were pending with accountability courts.
He said NAB Rawalpindi had established a special cell to monitor housing schemes operating in the region. He said that all records regarding housing schemes, the number of which comes to over 700, had been obtained from the Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA).
Asghar said NAB had dedicated a toll-free Fraud and Anti-Corruption Hotline (111-622-622) at the NAB headquarters in Islamabad and regional offices in Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Lahore, Quetta and Karachi to register complaints against corruption, misuse of authority and fraud.
He said the hotline had been operational for the last two months and received two to three complaints daily. He said the hotline was open from 9am to 4pm during all working days.
The NAB official said that identity of complainants was kept secret if they desired. He said NAB verified complaints from its own sources before initiating any action on them. He said that if any complaint was found fake, complainant was punished under the National Accountability Ordinance.
Asghar said that those providing NAB evidence of its officials’ corruption would be awarded Rs 1 million each and their identity would be kept secret. He urged people to help NAB expose corrupt persons.
He said NAB dealt cases regarding corruption in the award of government contracts, swindling with people, fake housing societies, sham forex companies, fraudulent business and loan ventures, encroachment and misuse of public property, and bribe and kickbacks.
