Balochistan PAC Summons Former LIEDA Chief Over Alleged Financial Irregularities in Dubai Expo 2020 Pavilion

Quetta: The Balochistan Provincial Assembly’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has summoned the former Managing Director of the Lasbela Industrial Estates Development Authority (LIEDA) and other relevant officials over alleged financial irregularities worth hundreds of millions of rupees in connection with Balochistan’s participation in Dubai Expo 2020.

The PAC meeting, chaired by Asghar Ali Tareen, reviewed the Special Audit Report for the 2021–22 fiscal year concerning the Balochistan Pavilion and the Balochistan Investment Conference held during Dubai Expo 2020. The audit was conducted by the Directorate General Audit Balochistan on the instructions of the then Chief Minister to examine compliance with financial regulations, procurement procedures, transparency standards, and the lawful use of public funds.

Officials informed the committee that LIEDA had been assigned responsibility for organizing the Balochistan Pavilion in collaboration with the provincial departments of Coastal Development and Fisheries, Science and Information Technology, and Mines and Energy. The Balochistan government allocated Rs200 million for the project, while total expenditures amounted to approximately Rs157.27 million.

According to the audit report, a contract worth Rs139.725 million was awarded through a negotiated process without competitive bidding, allegedly in violation of the Balochistan Public Procurement Rules 2014. The report further stated that neither the Board of Directors approved the contract nor were the legal reasons for bypassing competitive tendering properly documented, despite the provincial government having been informed by the federal government about participation in the Expo as early as July 2021.

Audit officials told the committee that the irregularities had been communicated to the relevant department in April 2022, but no response was received and no Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC) meeting was held. The audit recommended a full investigation to identify those responsible.

PAC Chairman Asghar Ali Tareen directed that the then Secretary, the former LIEDA Managing Director, and all officials involved be summoned to present their explanations before the committee. He stressed the need for accountability, noting that projects organized at the last minute often create opportunities for financial and administrative irregularities.

Committee members agreed that the officials serving at the time of the project must appear before the PAC to provide records and clarify their roles. The committee granted them 15 days to attend the next meeting with the required documentation and warned that if they failed to appear, the case could be referred to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) or the Anti-Corruption Establishment for further action.