A former Project Director of the BRT Yellow Line project has rejected allegations of corruption and illegality, claiming that he is being victimised due to reasons “best known to the worthy Chief Minister.”
In a statement, the former PD said he had been under threat and targeted for a long time on different pretexts. He alleged that the information being circulated in the media against him was based on “lies and misinformation.”
“I have done neither any illegality nor corruption. All being fed to media is a plethora of lies and misinformation,” he said in his statement.
Defending the advance payments made to contractors during his tenure, the former Project Director said the payments were issued around six months ago to expedite work on the BRT Yellow Line project.
According to him, the contractors not only accelerated the pace of work but also committed in writing to complete their respective projects at least nine months ahead of schedule.
“When I was PD BRT Yellow Line six months ago, I had made advance payment to contractors to get work expedited,” he stated.
The former project director further claimed that the World Bank had been informed about the payments through financial reporting and had accepted the matter. He said the contractors had also submitted written timelines for completion of work and agreed to provide additional bank guarantees, besides their already intact bank guarantees and overdue IPCs.
He maintained that no contractor had abandoned the project site so far. Instead, he alleged that harassment by the Anti-Corruption Establishment, commonly known as ACE, and others had badly affected the project, causing damage not only to him but also to the Sindh government.
“None of the contractors has abandoned the site till now. On the contrary, harassment by ACE and others has badly affected the project,” he claimed.
The former PD argued that advance payments in development projects are a routine practice across the province and are made to ensure timely completion of work. He said project directors are often criticised as inefficient when projects are delayed, but in this case, action was being taken against him despite efforts to speed up work.
Calling the action by the Anti-Corruption Establishment Sindh a “personal vendetta,” he also claimed that the process of his termination from service was underway.
“Invoking of criminal jurisdiction by ACE is just a personal vendetta,” he said.
He added that he was at a loss to understand why such pressure and “torture” were being inflicted on him.
The official version of the Anti-Corruption Establishment or the Sindh government was not immediately available. Their response will be included once received.
