Khyber Pakhtunkhwa refers motor registration scam to NAB

The Department of Excise and Taxation, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa referred the motor vehicle registration scam to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) investigation and announced to go for contingency plan to start the suspended vehicles' registration process in the province.
This was disclosed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minister for Excise and Taxation, Liaquat Shabab while addressing a press conference here in the Media Centre of the Directorate of Information on Thursday. He was flanked by Secretary Excise and Taxation, Akbar Khan, Director General, Syed Nazar Hussein Shah and other senior officials of the department.
The provincial government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2005 signed an agreement with German firm Eha Hoffmaan GMBH for the computerisation of the motor vehicles registration, publication of registration books and provision of number plates. Furthermore, the imparting of the computerisation training of the staff of the department was also the responsibility of the firm.
The firm was working on the basis of BOT (build operate and transfer) and the dead of the completion was the end of the year 2010. The project was given extension on technical basis to install the plant for the preparation of the number plates, printing of registration book and the transfer of the old data into the new computerised system.
The department in the meanwhile carried out two inquiries regarding irregularities in the motor registration and number plates and both held the firm responsible for it. The first inquiry was conducted after the seizure of a vehicle carrying registration No Peshawar BB-2262, whose owners were possessing fake documents, which were prepared by the official firm.
The department conducted inquiry into the matter and on April 12, 2011 constituted a committee in this regard, which completed its finding May 5, 2011. Similarly, in the meanwhile, the department seized another vehicle possessing the registration book and number plate issued by the firm and the department go for conducting another inquiry on June 2, 2011 and submitted its report on August 10, 2011.
The department also conducted a huge inquiry on the reports published in media regarding the revelations of a car-lifters don and two more in which experts from other departments were also included. The inquiry committee started its proceeding on July 16, 2011 and compiled a report comprising of 350 pages, which exonerated the departments and the foreign firm responsible for illegal registration of about 2000 non-duty paid, theft and vehicles leased out by different commercial banks.
The department, in light of the said inquiry sought legal opinion from the department of law regarding the referring of the matter to the National Accountability Bureau, which have already initiated probe into the matter on the basis of the information published in different newspapers.
Defending the decision of referring the case to NAB, he said that the national anti-graft agency possessing better software and equipment for conducting inquiry into the matter. Further measures, he said will be taken after the publication of the inquiry report of NAB.
He said that due to these inquiries and other crises the process of the issuance of registration book and number plates remained suspended since September 2010 in the province. Due to the suspension of the process not only the people were suffering, but the province was also facing financial losses and the people moving to other provinces for the registration of vehicles.
For the resolution of the problem, he said the provincial government planned a contingency plan and following the procedure and system of motor registration in Punjab. The registration books will be published in Pakistan Printing Press while the number plates will be prepared by the department of Science and Technology.
The responsibility of the provincial government, he said would be only the forwarding of the demand to the central database, which will be under the supervision of the department of science and technology. The plan, he said would be launched within two or three weeks to minimise the grievances of the people.
To a question, he said that due to business in the inquiries, the department was not coming before the press and on its completion they are facing the media. He said that district excise and taxation officers were used to seek the required registration books and number plates and the firm would have to import it from Germany. He said that due to the renaming of the province, the firm was paid Rs 23 million as compensation for the already manufactured number plates. He said that any one involved in the scam would be taken to task. However, he said that the contract of the firm is still in tact as the allegations have not proved.