Re: Where Rs. 50 Crore went ?
**Govt denies IB used money to buy favours
Saturday, January 17, 2009
By Asim Yasin**
ISLAMABAD: A Rs 500 million scam in the Intelligence Bureau (IB) echoed in the National Assembly on Friday, as the government remained clueless about reports of distribution of huge money to buy loyalties and favour of media persons.
On a point of order, PML-N legislator Ahsan Iqbal referred to the reports in the press that the government agency has doled out Rs500 million from secret funds for the purpose. “The government should respond to this report and tell the house where the money was spent and what was the purpose of spending it,” he said.
He also pointed out that in his column senior journalist Hamid Mir has said that even Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and IB chief did not know where the Rs 500 million were spent and who released the amount in the name of journalists’ welfare. The prime minister was present in the House when the issue was raised while Rehman Malik, the adviser to PM on interior, was not there to respond.** However, when he came to the House later, he chose not to respond.
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However, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Sherry Rehman denied the reports of disbursement of Rs 500 million among the journalists from the secret fund.
Responding to the point of order raised by PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal, she said the ministry spends funds for the welfare of the journalistic community and not on individuals. “Neither we have discretionary funds, nor we have the fiscal space for spending them for such purposes,” she said.