Senator Faisal Vawda has revealed that he received death threats from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officers after raising concerns about the purchase of 1,010 vehicles, a question discussed in a standing committee meeting in the Senate. Vawda claimed he has evidence to support these claims.
The Senate Standing Committee for Funding, chairman of Senator Saleem Mandviwala, convened to discuss the issue of FBR’s purchase agreement. During the meeting, Vawda claimed that FBR officials threatened his life when he raised the question and said he was prepared to present proof.
He named several FBR officers and revealed that he has compiled a list of 54 corrupt officials he is ready to share.
FBR chairman, Rashid Langrial, expressed his concern about the allegations and said that as a parliamentarian, Vawda’s complaint should be taken over seriously.
“If you received threats, I could also be in danger. This case will not be left uncontrolled. It will be sent to an investigative agency for a criminal investigation,” Langrial said.
Vawda called on the government to act quickly and said he had come across similar situations during his time in office and did not want the case to be delayed.
The committee also addressed the issue of FBR officers who completed a raid in a multinational company’s office. Committee members, including Farooq H. Naik, emphasized that this was a sensitive matter and called for a criminal investigation, suggesting that the case is referred to the federal Investigation Agency (FIA).
Langrial assured the committee that a thorough investigation would be conducted in the raid and said he would give a complete report on the case if they trusted him. If they preferred a survey from another officer, he was open to it too.
Senator Shibli Faraz raised concern that the vehicle’s purchase was made without a competitive bid, and called it a criminal question that required investigation. Langrial assured the committee that the purchase process for the vehicle would remain on wait until all concerns were treated. He called for the case not to be delayed further.
The question of approving the procurement process from Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) was also discussed. Langrial clarified that although the law did not require prior PPRA approval, the process should have been reviewed by the PPRA board. He added that the Minister of Finance should seek detailed information from PPRA about the purchase of vehicles.
Langrial also questioned why other government departments were not categorized in the same way that FBR officers in the integrated system, which expressed frustration over the lack of consistency everywhere.
