KP requests audit of funds for war on terror

Irfan Khan

ISLAMABAD: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) caretaker government has formally requested the federal government to conduct an audit of funds allocated for war on terror since 2013, through a letter on Friday.

The document obtained by HUM News English reveals KP government’s move to hold a special audit of Rs415 billion that the province received against counter-terrorism measures during the tenure of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

The development has come to light against the backdrop of a directive from former Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who had called for accountability of all those involved in the disbursals of the fund, when he visited Peshawar after the mosque bombing in Cantonment area in January this year.

KP’s appeal is meant to prompt the Ministry of Finance to consider commissioning the Auditor General of Pakistan to undertake this audit, the scope of which will encompass a range of inquiries, including an investigation into the total funds received by KP since the seventh NFC Award, and a federal financial disbursement mechanism.

Additionally, the audit will compare the increase in expenditures of the Department of Interior and Police with other provincial departments, determine the specific projects and amounts spent on counter-terrorism initiatives, and assess the overall impact of the expenditures of the received funds.

Therequest comes at a time when the north-western province is witnessing a full-blown return of terrorist outfits and activities.

Read: Terrorist killed, weapons recovered in South Waziristan

In 2010, the 7th National Finance Commission Award (NFC) was concluded with KP receiving more than Rs400bn. The award stipulated that, starting from the fiscal year 2010-11, the province would receive an extra one per cent of the national resources to help offset the losses incurred due to terrorism.

Background:

Over the past nine years, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has reportedly spent Rs413b in its fight against extremism with concerns emerging over the allocation of the hefty sum, with a particular focus on whether the money was channelled towards projects other than bolstering security within KP and its tribal districts.

From the onset of the PTI government in KP in 2013 until 2022, over these nine years, budgetary records reveal that the province received varying amounts each year.

Security officials revealed that from the divisible pool, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa received 30.23 billion rupees in 2015-16, 34.38 billion in 2016-17, 36.40 billion in 2017-18, 39.40 billion in 2018-19, 40.30 billion in 2019-20, 44.80 billion in 2020-21, and 58.80 billion in 2021-22, and around 68.60 billion in 2022-23.

DIRE STRAITS

When approached for comments by Hum News English, interim provincial information minister, Mian Feroze Jamal Shah Kakakhel, emphasised the importance of auditing these funds. “This is our children’s money. The province has been wronged, and it is our duty to investigate.” The finances of the provinces are in shambles, all while the militant organisations are at their strongest in decades, after the fall of Kabul.

“Today, the province’s financial state is so dire that the interim provincial government lacks funds even for salaries,” Shah iterated.

KP is expected to recieve Rs90 billion more this year for war on terror.

Despite multiple attempts, the finance minister from the previous PTI governments, Taimur Saleem Jhagra, remained unreachable for a statement.