ISLAMABAD: The federal government has shown deep concern over on money on Honda, Toyota, Suzuki and other four wheelers and is dissatisfied over the measures taken by the Industries Ministry to discourage the illegal price an investor charges from a buyer, who wants to buy a car immediately.
This was revealed by Malik Muhammad Amir Dogar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs, to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), held here at Parliament on Wednesday.
Rana Tanveer Hussain chaired the meeting. He said the federal cabinet (on November 23) had been given a briefing by the Ministry of Industries on auto sector with special focus on own money.
The special assistant said the investors were charging illegally Rs800,000 on immediate delivery on Toyota Fortuner and Rs100,000 to Rs500,000 on smaller cars.
Auto finance was 30 percent of overall leasing.
He recommended the government to call officials of auto financing banks, companies owners, and Ministry of Industries for briefing.
Member Committee Khawaja Asif said the companies defaulted on indigenisation of motor vehicle manufacturing through deletion programme as deletion process supposed to be completed in 1998.
He alleged that the auto companies were depositing billions of rupees of public money in the commercial banks and enjoying interest on the money by delaying the deliveries of vehicles.
He further said that Honda, Toyota, Suzuki, and other companies were plundering the public money.
He maintained as a chairman of a committee on auto sector constituted by previous government in 2004, he prepared a new auto policy for new entrants in auto sector and he had to face tough resistance from the Engineering Development Board (EDB) and secretary Ministry of Industries at that time.
The auto companies awarded “Protection Money” to governments.
The auto companies were using aged technology in new cars identified in reports in 2004, he said.
Noor Alam Khan said that consumers were paying upto Rs800,000 own money because auto companies failed to deliver four-wheeler in time.
Auditor General of Pakistan, Muhammad Ajmal Gondal, said that various audit reports were available on auto sector and waiting for action.
The committee once again directed the chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to appear before the committee next week to respond audit paras and appropriate accounts related to the bureau.
The chairman NAB did not appear before the meeting on Wednesday, which irked the chairman and members committee.
Director General NAB headquarters explained that the chairman could not appear due to prior engagement in Lahore in missing person cases.
He is chairman of a commission on missing persons.
The chairman committee said in case, he would not appear before the committee, the PAC may invoke its power to summon him and it was his last chance.
Earlier, Noor Alam said that his sub-committee had been asking the chairman to appear before the committee for the last two years but he failed to appear.
He said not only chairman NAB, the secretary interior, and the chairman NADRA also did not appear before the sub-committee.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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