KARACHI:National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Balochistan has filed a reference against three former Balochistan Development Authority (BDA) chairmen for misuse of authority and corrupt practices in installation of a water desalination plant to be set up in the port city of Gwadar.
According to the NAB, the illegal award of contract and payments to the blue eyed companies caused Rs 1 billion loss to the national exchequer. Former chairmen Balochistan Development Authority (BDA) including Muhammad Farooq, Sadat Anwar Qambrani, Ali Zaheer Hazara, Director BDA, Javed Khan and contractors namely Ejaz Malik, and Syed Mohammad Badar were nominated in the reference filed in the Accountability Court Quetta.
An investigation into the Water Desalination Project initiated to provide clean water to the residents of port city of Gwadar revealed that BDA authorities in connivance with each other not only illegally awarded contract of the project to Ejaz Malik, owner of the Air treatment, and Syed Mohammad Badar, owner of the Pure Pak Company, but also made advance payments in violation of rules and regulations.
Further investigation by the NAB revealed that the contracting companies neither fell in the required category nor possessed relevant experience to set up a water desalination plant. It is pertinent to mention here that two million gallons of water was to be provided on daily basis to the residents of Gwadar under the clean water project which has not been completed after the passage of 15 years and even spending about one billion rupees.
NAB Balochistan with the approval of Chairman NAB Justice Javed Iqbal submitted the reference against three BDA chairmen, one Director BDA and two company owners in Accountability Court Quetta.