Audit officials informed the committee that Rs26.4 billion was outstanding under toll collection
ISLAMABAD:
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday flagged massive financial irregularities involving the National Highway Authority (NHA), revealing that Rs 26.4 billion in road tax remains unpaid while another Rs 16 billion could not be recovered from overloaded trucks, causing significant losses to the national exchequer.
The PAC meeting, chaired by Moeen Amir Pirzada, reviewed audit objections regarding the Ministry of Communications for the financial year 2023-24.
National Highway Authority audits
During the session, the committee held a detailed discussion on 15 audit objections related to NHA.
Audit officials informed the committee that Rs26.4 billion was outstanding against NHA under toll collection.
Responding to the objection, the NHA secretary said the matter had already been taken up with the National Logistics Cell, Frontier Works Organization and private contractors, adding that the amount was used against allocations under the Public Sector Development Program (PSDP).
PAC member Bilal Mandokhail questioned why representatives of NLC and FWO were not present at the meeting and sought clarity on where accountability would be fixed.
NHA officials replied that the institutions concerned had been invited but failed to attend, prompting Mandokhail to remark that the meeting had not been called at short notice.
PAC member Hina Rabbani Khar said the issue reflected weak enforcement of the law and called it alarming that companies that do not comply with contractual obligations were awarded new contracts.
Toll rates
She asked if the contracts with companies that failed to pay dues had been cancelled. Committee member Shahida Begum also expressed concern over the continued increase in toll rates.
NHA officials informed the committee that 33 lawyers representing private companies had already approached the courts in connection with the matter. With a quick solution, the PAC chairman directed that the issue should be concluded at the earliest.
The committee gave private contractors 60 days to pay their dues, while state-owned enterprises were given time until June. The director warned that legal proceedings would be initiated if the payments were not made within the stipulated time.
During the meeting, another major revelation emerged regarding losses caused by highway congestion. Audit officials said Rs16 billion could not be recovered from overloaded trucks, resulting in significant losses to the national exchequer.
