LAHORE: The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has detected `illegalities and misappropriation of funds` in four projects of the Pakistan Cricl(et Board (PCB).

In its initial findings, the agency has detected a Rs8.6 million fake bank guarantee furnished by a contractor and Rs5.6m illegal payment made to another contractor in two separate projects.

The FIA is investigating alleged wrongdoings in the establishment of a bio-mechanical laboratory at Qadhafi Stadium and construction of Garhi Khuda Bakhsh Stadium in Larkana, Cricket Academy in Multan and Far End Pavilion at Qadhafi Stadium.

`The agency has issued summons to contractors and consultants of the projects. ThePCBmanagementwill be summoned subsequently,` an FIA official told Dawn.

However, the PCB has defended its position in the projects and denied having committed any illegality or wrongdoing. `The board has submitted relevant information and documents to the FIA to help it in the investigations. It has also filed counter-claims in the FIA and the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) against illegalities committed by complainant firms, PCB spokesman Raza Rashid Kitchlew told Dawn.

The falce bank guarantee was furnished by the contractor of the Garhi Khuda Bakhsh Stadium project with the connivance of PCB officials, the agency suspects.

In the Cricket Academy project, the FIA probe has discovered that the PCB dealt with the mobilisation cost (Rs5.6m) separately from the bidding amount and paid it to the contractor.

`This is illegal and it was not possible without the collusion of both parties the PCB and the contractor,` an FIA official said.

In the Far End Pavilion project,the FIA is investigating excessive payment made to the contractor in violation of rules, thus causing a loss of millions of rupees to the PCB.

`The board has allegedly made excessive payment against the work completed in the project, the official said.

The installation of the biomechanical laboratory project has been delayed for an indefinite period and the contractor is claiming a loss of millions of rupees. The contractor firm, the U.Q. and Sons, has accused PCB Chief Operating Officer Subhan Ahmad of not providing electric drawing and releasing payments as per agreement.

As a result, he has told the FIA, the project which was about to be completed has hit snags and costly equipment the PCB has acquired for the laboratory in 2006-07 has become outdated.

In the absence ofthelaboratory in Lahore, the contractor has alleged, the PCB is sending cricketers abroad for the test and bearing huge expenses on it.

Further investigation The FIA is also investigating why consultants were not appointed for the project according to the rules of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority and the PEC.

The complainant firm has blamed Subhan Ahmad and others at the helm in the PCB for `reported illegalities` in the project. But the board denies it though it admits that one of its officials retd Col Mohammad Bashir was involved in wrongdoings and subsequently sacked.

Replying to Dawn`s queries, the PCB spokesman said: `In the biomechanical lab case, complainant Marzouk Munir Qazi has not disclosed full facts. An employee of the contractor in Aug 2015 was caught while offering Rs100,000 bribe to the project consultant.

The contractor admitted this before a PCB inquiry committee and on its recommendations theboard terminated the contract in Dec 2015.

`The PCB informed the contractor about reconciliation of accounts but he chose to file frivolous complaints in a mala fide manner just to blacl
The spokesman said that the PCB had fired Col Mohammad Bashir, who was working in the infrastructure department, on recommendations of the inquiry committee for being in `collusion with the contractor`.

He said that the machinery acquired for the laboratory had not become outdated and had been put to use by the current PCB administration in a joint project initiated in collaboration with the Lahore University of Management Sciences. `In fact the biomechanical lab at the university was inaugurated by the PCB chairman earlier this year.

About the Garhi Khuda Bakhsh Stadium project, the spol(esman said: `The contract was awarded to the contractors through public tender process. The issue of the fake bank guarantee was being dealt with Col Bashir, whose failure to deal with such discrepancies led to his removal from the PCB. The issue of verification of the bank guarantee did not arise till after completion of the project at which point it was a closed transaction.

Thus, the PCB has incurred no loss.

About the Cricket Academy project, he said: `The said amount (mobilisation cost) was an advance payment required due to hurdles being faced in the completion of the project. The payment was later adjusted against the total contract amount and the PCB did not suf fer any loss.

`For the Far End Pavilion project, the additional payment was not excessive and it had to be made due to revision of designs by the consultant, the National Engineering Services Pakistan.