F.P. Report
CHITRAL: On identifying the embezzlement and substandard quality work in the construction work, the contractor attacked the house of the journalist along with the criminal goons and threatened him with serious consequences. With the collusion of the institution and the fake village organization, funds worth million of rupees are being embezzled.
Aga Khan Agency for Habitat,(AKAH) a non-governmental organization in Chitral, is a branch of the Aga Khan Development Network. When his embezzlement and substandard work was pointed out, the contractor of the fake organization stormed our correspondent’s house with several thugs, berated him and threatened him with dire consequences. Under the supervision of AKAH. 300 feet protection wall and a 300 feet check dam are being constructed at a cost of 8.8 Million in a flood drain of Singoor village located a few steps away from the AKAH office.
According to some independent sources, this fund is several times higher, but the organization says it is 8.8 million. This protection wall is approved in plum concrete in the papers, which will contain only 40% stone and 60% cement, but the contractor of the fake organization use 100% stone in its construction. and thus AKAH has tried to embezzle it through a fake organization.
A lot of money is being spent on this protection wall, but the work is very substandard and poor, which is likely to be washed away in one flood. A three-by-three-foot stone wall has been built, leaving only two inches of open space in front of it. By tying a shutter in front of this space and putting some cement mortar on top of the stone filling wall, an attempt has been made to fraudulently show that the entire wall is made of plum concrete i.e. cement.
Our team When the photos and videos of this stone filling wall shown to the Engineer and Regional Program Manager of Akah, they were very worried that their negligence and fraud was going to be exposed. They ordered the entire wall to be demolished . But the president and manager of the fake organization became angry.
They tried to attack our correspondent’s house with several thugs and threatened him with dire consequences Deputy Commissioner of Chitral, District Police Officer, SHO of Chitral police station and law enforcerment agencies were also .also informed informed about this attack and thread. When this wall was demolished, it was proved that the entire wall was made of stones instead of concrete.
Earlier, AKAH’s Hunza Ous Drinking water supply Scheme, Dolomous Dug well, and other projects also failed miserably. The people of the area demand from the higher authorities and concern quarters to investigate all the projects and schemes of AKAH after revealing corruption and negligence as this scheme of Singoor is located in an urban area just a few meters away from its office, while the uplands and remote valleys. How much has been embezzled in these development works and how poor and substandard work will be done where the access of media team, administration and common man is also difficult. It should also be scrutinized and honestly audited as to where and how this huge amount of money is being spent, which has not brought any ease to people’s lives.
When our correspondent tried to get their vversion of AKAH’s engineer and RPM on such large-scale malpractice and embezzlement under their noses, they refused to discuss the matter. And the documents and fund information of these projects were also not given to him for which a written application was formally submitted under the Right to Information Act. The people of Chitral also complain that other institutions of AKDN, like Aga Khan Health Service, Aga Khan Rural support program. There are many examples of failed projects and looting poor people, which need to be investigated.
