The Punjab caretaker government on Sunday termed corruption allegations made by PML-N’s Shahid Khaqan Abbasi regarding the free flour distribution programme “false and fabricated”.
A day earlier, the PML-N Leader had alleged that Rs20 billion was looted during the free floor distribution programme, which was first rolled out in Punjab.
At a seminar at Lahore’s Government College University (GCU), the PML-N leader had talked at length about the issues plaguing governance in the country.
“Whenever there is a problem, the officer is changed but the system remains the same. The officer just fixes a few things. We now identify honest officers. There was a time when we identified dishonest officers,” he said.
“Recently, Rs84bn worth of [free] flour was distributed. I am sorry to say that approximately Rs20bn was looted.
Although the PML-N leader did not single out the Punjab government, provincial Interim Information Minister Amir Mir issued a statement on Sunday and termed Abbasi’s allegations to be “false and fabricated”. He said that the provincial government had provided relief to millions of beneficiaries under the programme.
“There wasn’t even an ounce of corruption,” Mir said, adding that those making the claims had damaged their own credibility.
The Punjab minister claimed that the free flour distribution programme was the province’s most successful scheme yet under which approximately 30 million people were provided free flour during the month of Ramazan.
Mir highlighted the free flour scheme was jointly funded by both the federal and the provincial government. He lamented that the programme had become a target due to the internal political differences within the PML-N.
The provincial caretaker minister urged Abbasi to either apologise or provide evidence to back the allegations.
“The caretaker Punjab government believes in transparency and impartiality and can give an account of every penny regarding the flour scheme. Therefore, no one can accuse it of corruption,” Mir said.
