Ministry of Foreign Affairs and attached departments: Rs 5.063 billions procedural irregularities detected by AGP

The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has detected financial indiscipline, misappropriations and procedural irregularities to the tune of Rs 5.063 billion in Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its attached departments in its audit report for the year 2015-16. According to the audit report available with Business Recorder, the AGP conducted audit of 13 local formations and 124 missions abroad. In the report, the audit authorities found violation of rules in eight cases amounting to Rs 3501.638 million and unauthorized payments in eight more cases amounting to Rs 794.167 million.
The auditors also pointed out nine cases where an amount of Rs 220.062 million was recoverable while a loss of Rs 68.494 million was found in five cases. Lack of internal control was observed in eight cases which involved Rs 222.871 million.
The report pointed out that irregular expenditure was incurred in five cases, involving a total of Rs 331.756 million. The auditors also found that excess payment was made in three cases up to Rs 13.764 million while doubtful payment of Rs 9.545 million was also noticed in three cases. The report also mentioned that record was not produced to the auditors in one case which involves Rs 1.175 million.
In an audit para, the auditors also found misappropriation of funds, amounting to Rs 7.226 million which was drawn by three officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at Pakistan's mission in Mexico from imprest account through fictitious documents.
The report stated that the matter was brought in the notice of the management of the mission as well as Ministry of Foreign Affairs which recommended certain administrative and disciplinary action against the concerned officials. However, no further progress was reported to the audit, it stated, adding the audit department also recommended immediate conduct of departmental inquiry to determine the extent of financial loss and initiate legal and disciplinary proceedings for effecting recovery from the officials at fault.
The report further noted that authorities in Pakistan Embassy in Washington, DC, in violation of the rules, made payment of Rs 741.930 million on account of repair and renovation of two old chancery buildings. According to the report, the expenditure was held irregular because no designer and engineer estimates were prepared, open tendering process was not followed in one case and contractor raised cost without approval of the competent authority.
The report found that contrary to the rules, advances amounting to Rs 204.190 million on account of TA/DA, transportation charges and purchase of air tickets were paid to different officers and officials during the period 2009-15 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its missions abroad including in New York, Doha, Riyadh, Jeddah, Cairo, Harare and Ottawa, etc. These advances were neither adjusted nor recovered till the time of audit despite lapse of a considerable period of time.
The audit authorities found wasteful expenditure amounting to Rs 6.792 million due to irregular appointment of a local lady as trade officer by consul general Vancouver, Canada, in 2010. The reported pointed out the record revealed that no activity was performed by the lady officer for the purposes of her appointment. It further stated that neither any response was received nor any DAC meeting was convened till the finalization of the report despite bringing the matter in notices of the management of the mission concerned and subsequent requests to Foreign Secretary on November 23, 2016 and again on December 28, 2016.
Auditors also found doubtful claims on account of TA/DA, amounting to Rs 1.103 million by defence and air attaché in Pakistan Embassy in Paris on conducting some unauthorized tours during the period 2013-15. They found that the hotel bills attached with the claims were not machine printed and their authenticity was doubtful. The Mission authorities in their annotated reply admitted that after necessary verification the claimed bills were found fake, the report further stated, adding no reply was submitted to the audit. During the same period, the report also found that the defence and air attaché in Pakistan Embassy in Paris made doubtful claims of telephone charges amounting Rs 1.215 million.
The report also found unauthorised retention of government funds in the accounts of Army, Navy, Air force and Defence Procurement establishment, amounting to Rs 282.504 million. During the audit of Attaché Defence Procurement of Pakistan Embassy in Washington, it was observed that an amount of Rs 282.504 million was unduly retained by Army, Navy, Air Force and DP wings of the mission which was not surrendered to the government as required under the rules. It further stated that neither any reply to the audit was received from the concerned ministry nor any DAC meeting was convened.