ISLAMABAD: Bureaucratic delays related to a key healthcare initiative under Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal (PBM) are resulting in the deaths of many patients while the surveys done by PBM to target the potential beneficiaries were political in many cases especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and financial irregularities of around Rs 96.66 million have been found in the accounts of PBM.
These details have been disclosed in the audit report of Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) into the accounts of PBM. The report is of the audit year 2020-21 and it covers financial year 2019-20.
According to the report, the PBM's Individual Financial Assistance-Health, which gets most of the budgetary allocation and covers medical cases, faces bureaucratic delays resulting in the deaths of many patients and the utilisation reports on account of grants to certain hospitals under IFA-Health are without reconciliation, amounting to almost Rs 2 billion.
"Many beneficiaries are registered with multiple social safety net programmes which burden the sector growth and deprive the deserving people. As the government has limited number of resources, the social protection should use optimum number of resources efficiently to bear maximum results," the AGP report recommends.
In addition, the report unearths PBM's employees-related irregularities amounting to Rs 96.66 million. This amount does not include any recoverable amount, the report says.
During the audit of PBM headquarters and its regional offices for the financial years 2018 to 2020, the audit observed that Rs 96.66 million were paid to 266 PBM employees as advance salaries against the rules. The said amount was debited under the head of "pay" as there was no provision of advance salary in the federal government rules. Interest was also not being charged on the advance salaries.
The details of the amount paid as advance salary suggest that 140 employees of PBM headquarters in Islamabad were paid Rs 59.45 million, 113 employees of PBM Regional Office Karachi were paid Rs 31.74 million and 13 employees of PBM RO Quetta were paid Rs 5.45 million.
"Audit is of the view that Bait-ul-Mal fund is used for benefits of employees instead of Mustahqeen/needy and poor deserving people, which is violation of laid down procedure and an unnecessary burden on PBM," the AGP report notes.
This irregularity occurred due to weak internal controls and poor financial management, it says.
The PBM management responded to the audit and took the stance that payment of advance salaries to PBM employees were made in the light of PBM Loan and Advance Policy duly approved by PBM Board in its 50th meeting. The PBM management said advance payments to employees were recovered regularly on monthly basis as per policy.
The AGP is of the view that this reply is not tenable as such policy is not consistent with federal government rules. The Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC), in its meeting held in January this year, directed PBM management to stop further payments as advance salaries.
It directed that the case be put for review of PBM Board, financial rules be amended and approval from federal government be obtained.
The AGP recommends that the payment of advance salaries be stopped, matter be referred to Finance Division and recovery made from the employees under intimation to audit.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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