Sust Dry Port crisis has deepened due to wrangling between two groups of local influential while the small traders of the area are upset feeling that their investment is at a risk. The local investors demanded of the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) to conduct audit of the accounts of Sust Dry Port Trust to unearth the alleged volume of tax evaded by the port administration.
According to sources a company Pak-China International Cargo Forwarding Agency Automobile Transport Management Limited was established in 1999 at Sust, Northern Areas, a joint venture of Pakistani Silk Route Dryport Trust and a Chinese company Sino Trans Group Xinjiang Co with the objective to strength and extend economic and trade relations between China, Pakistan and Central Asian countries.
Beside other objectives, one of its aim was to construct and establish dry port at Sust, equipped with all the modern facilities and amenities of international standards, including supervision warehouse of customs, cargo yard, parking area, and hotels with all requisite facilities.
According to the documents available with Business Recorder, it revealed that both sides would be sharing the cost of land, cash, equipment and management technology. It further add that the time limit of joint investment and management tentatively be at 15 to 20 years and the profit and risk would be shared according to the ratio of the shares.
But, with the passage of time the administration of the port was hijacked by local influentials like Mir Salim group and Raja Shabaz group, violating the agreement, resultantly, both the Chinese investor and local shareholders had no information about the internal affairs of the port.
Realising that the port trust is being run without following rules and the two main stakeholders (community and Chinese company) were being ignored, the community formed a committee in September this year and demanded of the government to investigate the irregularities allegedly being committed by the port administration headed by a son of the deputy chief executive Northern Areas and his partners.
A former PPP member of Northern Areas Legislative Council, Wazir Baig told this correspondent from Hunza on telephone that the administration of the port trust had been ignoring the investors since its establishment and did not take the shareholders into confidence while operating the port.
He alleged that the trust was being run without audit, which he said was sheer violation of rules and the agreement signed between the stakeholders.
He alleged that Deputy Chief Executive Mir Ghazanfar and his family members had turned "the Sust Dry Port Trust into a family affair" and put in danger the local people's investment and trades with China.
He asked the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) and Northern Areas Registrar of Joint Stock Companies to audit the accounts of the Sust Dry Port Trust.
Meanwhile, a grand meeting of notables, public representatives, political leaders, lawyers and social activists, who mostly are the shareholders of the port trust expressed concern over large-scale corruption and mismanagement in running the affairs of Sust Dry Port Trust that has put in jeopardy the economic interests of the poor people of the area and the future of the port.
However, sources in Central Board of Revenue (CBR) said that the board heard about the scam recently after it was reported in the newspapers and sent its custom and intelligence team to investigate it. A senior official said that the board would take serious action against those found involved in irregularities.