The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) has verified that as many as 18,000 vehicles are in the custody of various ministries, departments and autonomous bodies out of which 14,000 are in use by non-entitled officers in various capacities.
The AGP sent these findings to the Public Account Committee of National Assembly (PAC) with recommendations that implementation of compulsory monetization of transport facility for civil servants will help save Rs 5.5 billion of the public money used for fuel and maintenance by non-entitled officers. "The actual number of vehicles is much higher as these figures do not include project vehicles," the AGP said.
Following the findings of the AGP as well as the directive of the Cabinet Division regarding implementation of 'Compulsory Monetization of Transport Facility for Civil Servants in grade 20 to grade 22,' the PAC has written letters to all the ministries and departments to furnish the details of utilization of vehicles and to produce certificates in this regard.
Yasmeen Rehman, Member PAC told Business Recorder that the committee is reviewing misuse of government cars by top bureaucrats even after receiving cash under the policy of monetization. She said the committee will likely to review the option which is currently under consideration where only 800cc cars will be provided for official purposes. It has been learnt that no ministry or autonomous body appeared before PAC and submitted certificates regarding legitimate use of vehicles owned by them. The PAC had given May 10 deadline for furnishing the certificates.
Failing to comply with the directives of PAC, Nadeem Afzal Gondal as Chairman PAC again directed PAC Secretariat to seek report from all the Principal Accounting Officers (PAOs) of ministries and autonomous bodies regarding implementation of all aspects of Compulsory Monetization of Transport Facility for Civil Servants. He further directed that all the PAOs should ensure strict implementation of the monetization policy within their respective ministries and departments. On the basis of the information provided by the PAOs and heads of attached departments, autonomous bodies, the PAC would conduct random checking and proceed against defaulting officers. The date for random checking is yet to be finalised, another member of PAC said.
The basic objective of the transport monetization policy is to eliminate any possibility of misuse of official vehicles, as well as to restrict the maintenance expenditure of the vehicles to a bare minimum. The Cabinet Division vide its letter dated December 12, 2011 informed all the ministries and divisions that federal government has approved the "Compulsory Monetization of Transport Facility for Civil Servants in grade 20 and to grade 22" to be implemented from 1st January, 2012 subject to fulfilment of certain parameters of the policy.
It was therefore decided that implementation of this policy will be strictly enforced by all the ministries, divisions, attached departments and sub-ordinate offices and its overall compliance as per defined parameters shall be the responsibility of all the PAOs by obtaining certificates from each of the entitled officer in grade-20 to grade-22 that he/she is not using any project vehicle of the operational department, general duty vehicle, as well as any vehicle of an organisation or body corporate in his/her ex-officio capacity as member of its board, except the only vehicle allocated to him/her through the monetization transport policy.
The PAC will also conduct the hearing of the cases of misuse of monetization policy including drawing of allowance and at the same time using government vehicle brought to the notice of Cabinet Division so far. Over the course of the past 60 years, there have been more than 20 studies on administrative reforms prepared by various government committees or commissions that have clearly identified this very serious problem, a former Cabinet Secretary said.