Sindh food dept embroiled in mega corruption scam
A multi-billion-rupee scam involving procurement of wheat and misappropriation of jute bags, also called bardana, has hit the Sindh food department after hundreds of thousands of such bags are either simply missing/ misappropriated or stuffed with chaff, it emerged.
The scam invited the attention of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), which first sealed and then unsealed several warehouses in upper Sindh's Larkana and Sukkur regions after counting.
Inquiries by media revealed that apart from the apex anti-graft watchdog, the Sindh Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) also lodged FIRs in Dadu, Sanghar and Karachi against flour mill owners, food officials and other private persons, including middlemen or other beneficiaries. The food department is yet to come on record to share official figures regarding this massive financial bungling.
NAB's inquiries are likely to culminate into a reference against unscrupulous elements including private persons and food department officials. NAB initiated action in Sukkur, Ghotki, Naushahro Feroze, Khairpur, Jacobabad, Qambar-Shahdadkot and Kashmore.
Sources in the Sindh food department told to media that NAB had not shared anything with them, but it appeared that between two million to 2.5m bags were either missing from warehouses or misappropriated. They said that the only figure available was of 194,000 bags, which according to the ACE's findings were misappropriated in Dadu district.
NAB had investigated the position of 2017-18 wheat crop's stocks in godowns of Sukkur and Larkana regions. This year, the Sindh government has not yet decided to procure wheat considering the commodity's large carryover stocks.
NAB intervened to look into available wheat stocks of Sindh for 2017-18 crop season following receipt of a complaint before Ramazan that wheat bags had been missing in warehouses.
"We checked warehouses first in Sukkur in the presence of magistrates following the complaint," said a NAB source. Then, he added, similar surprise visits were paid to warehouses in other districts as well and this led to a proper investigation. NAB completed counting of bags and the difference of missing bags was brought on record to thwart any attempt by food officials to purchase wheat from market and meet the difference.