The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is infamous for corruption scandals during its tenure. When in power, the PPP government faced several allegations of corruption, embezzlement, misuse of power and authority.
The PPP-led Sindh government is now embroiled in another scandal regarding the procurement of desks in public schools. A massive scandal of Rs3 billion has surfaced causing huge losses to the exchequer. Who is responsible for the scandal? It is unfortunate that ministers are defending the scam rather than taking responsibility or any corrective action.
The scandal
A report by Transparency International Pakistan said the Sindh Education and Literacy Department purchased dual desks for public schools at a 320% higher rate.
In a letter addressed to Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, it said the education had awarded four contracrs for the supply of dual desks in public sector schools of Sindh worth Rs3 billion at rates varying between Rs23,985 per desk and Rs29,500 per desk inclusive of taxes.
It disclosed that the previous tenders for the same procurement of the dual desk furniture were invited in 2019 for a lesser quantity. The lowest evaluated tender prices received from responsive bidders for these tenders varied between Rs5,700 and Rs 6,860 per desk. However, the education department for unknown reasons did not award the contracts.
PTI demands probe
The PTI demanded a probe into the complaint on buying dual desks at exorbitant rates. Sindh Assembly Opposition leader Haleem Haleem Adil Sheikh infact visited a furniture market in Liaquatabad to find out the rates of different desks.
He bought one desk and took it to the Sindh Assembly building. He claimed buying the same desk bought by the provincial authorities for Rs29,500 for Rs5,000. He alleged the Sindh government has purchased 160,000 desks for public schools at a much higher price than the market rate.
Sheikh lashed out at former Sindh Education Minister Saeed Ghani, saying that he was responsible for buying the desks at the high rates. The PTI leader also said that people who are in the Sindh government are living lavish lives at the expense of the poor.
The PTI had written a letter to the chief minister, highlighting that the provincial education department was allegedly purchasing dual desks for public schools at a 320% higher rate.
He urged the Supreme Court and the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to conduct a large-scale investigation into the alleged corruption in the purchase of the school desks.
Sindh minister’s defence
Former Sindh education minister Saeed Ghani defended the decision, saying the desks were purchased when Chief Minister Sindh Murad Alif Shah held the education portfolio.
He said a central procurement committee undertook the process to buy public schools’ furniture in Sindh in an independent and autonomous manner without any interference.
He said the committee formed for the purpose had taken into confidence the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), TIP, Sindh High Court (SHC) and the Anti-Corruption Establishment at every stage of the purchasing procedure.
The minister said that a sum of Rs3.6 billion was spent to purchase furniture for the government-run schools in Sindh. He said that it was completely unjust by some news channels to assume that the latest procurement deal was meant to embezzle Rs3bn.
Tenders floated
Ghani said that the committee’s head was eminent educationist Nisar Siddiqui, with members including former Sindh governor Moinuddin Haider, Transparency International Executive Director Saad Rashid and other officials.
The procurement committee rescinded the first tender of the procurement deal due to a lower bid than the cost of the consignment and furniture of a lesser quality to be supplied to fulfil the deal.
The tenders had been floated once again in 2019, with the bids at that time ranging between Rs21,000 and Rs29,000, but a stay order was obtained by the SHC against the prospective procurement deal. The stay order was vacated by the court in 2020, but that tender was again cancelled due to less time available to complete the contract.
Saeed Ghani added that the committee once again floated the tender for the deal in January 2021, while all the details of the deal were sent to NAB Sindh director-general before the finalisation of the contract.
The minister said that NAB Sindh replied to the request on July 7, 2021, that it could not become part of the procurement deal, so that it could take action if it received any complaint regarding the deal.
Ghani said that they had done their best to make sure that the entire procurement deal remained fully transparent and corruption-free before starting the process to purchase the school furniture.
Now it remains to be seen whether CM Sindh Murad Ali Shah will take action against those responsible and bring back the nation’s money on buying expensive furniture, or will he remains indifferent and hide the corruption under his own administration.
