Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani Missions are buying luxury cars for “trade promotion”.

Daily Times has learnt that Pakistani Mission in Rome bought a luxury car for the commercial wing for 19,400 euros without prior permission from the authority concerned.

Documents revealed that officials purchased the 2000CC car while they are entitled to drive a 1600CC car.

Similarly Mission in Buenos Aires bought an car worth Rs 1,820,803 while they can only buy a car up to Rs 1,800,000. Documents read that the authority violated the PPRA rules 2004.

The Commerce Ministry said the new car for the commercial wing was bought with the permission of the purchase committee of the Finance Division. However the audit is of the view that the car was bought over and above the specification approved by the division and the new car was also bought without condemning the old car.

The meeting agreed that the ministry to get the record of condemnation of old car and entitle for 2000CC car verified by audit, documents read.

On the other hand, the meeting directed to get the ex-post facto sanction of amount exceeding the sanctioned amount from the competent authority under intimation to audit within one month.

Sources said the ministry neither verified the record of condemnation of the old car nor it has approved the amount.

The Public Accounts sub-committee also took up this matter in January’s meeting and directed the ministry to clear the matter with audit officials.

Sources in the Commerce Ministry said, “The ministry is waiting for the minutes of the PAC instructions after that we will regularise it from the finance and other departments.”

When asked about the PAC directions to start inquiry against those who bought illegal furniture, got educational subsidy and spent extra money on entertainment, the officer said the ministry would start an inquiry against those people. “If the officer took extra money then we will recover it,” he added.