Board members of NTL: PAC for probe into assets statements, travel history

ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), on Thursday, directed the Interior Ministry to hold an inquiry into the annual assets statements and travel history of the board members of Technologies Limited (NTL)-a subsidiary of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA)- which says it is independent and exempt from the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP)’s audit.

Noor Alam Khan chaired the meeting of the Interior Ministry to examine the Audit Report 2019-20.

The NTL has an independent board with five members who were appointed in 2010 by the federal government. The annual development budget of the NADRA is not part of the federal budget, the committee was apprised.

The committee’s members grilled the officials of the Interior Ministry over not sharing records of the NTL to audit despite directives from the committee.

The chairman said that it came to the committee’s notice that the services of employees were hired on hefty salaries and an official Ashfaq Ahmed was drawing Rs1.3 million per month.

Interior Ministry secretary apprised the committee members that the NTL was an independent organisation and not under the management control of the ministry, however, the federal government had taken notice of its non-compliance in the light of earlier directives of the committee. The management of the NTL shared its financial statement with the ministry on Tuesday, he maintained.

Responding to questions of members’ committee, the officials of the NTL said it had an independent board chaired by former head NADRA Tariq Malik.

The CDA chairman said that 18 cooperative housing societies were registered on names of federal ministries but private investors were running the affairs of these societies.

Noor Alam said that cooperative societies on the name of the Senate and the Cabinet were registered and Gulberg Green Society failed to supply clean drinking water.

The chairman committee directed the CDA to make rules which bind the managements of these housing societies not to charge additional development or other charges which were received at the time of allotments.

During the audit of the Interior Ministry, the audit officials alleged that in one case the CDA had to be burdened with Rs1.11 billion in losses over not cancelling the plot despite the lease period being expired.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023