Islamabad: A fact-finding committee constituted by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has found former National Highway Authority (NHA) Chairman Muhammad Sheheryar Sultan, along with Member Finance Syed Mazhar Hussain Shah and General Manager Revenue Taimour Hassan, guilty of influencing field formations to award the operation of three toll plazas to their preferred contractors without following a fair and transparent process.
The high-level committee, headed by former federal secretary Mian Mushtaq Ahmed, was formed by the Prime Minister in November last year after the removal of then NHA Chairman Muhammad Sheheryar Sultan.
The committee was tasked with examining the merits, integrity, and motivation behind awarding contracts—without open auction—for the collection of toll revenue at the Pattoki Toll Plaza and Lyari Expressway, as well as toll plazas located at Phool Nagar, Ghazi Ghat, Qutabpur, Rajanpur, D.I. Khan-1, and Kohat Tunnel.
During its inquiry, the committee examined the role of former Chairman Muhammad Sheheryar Sultan, Member Finance Syed Mazhar Hussain Shah, and GM Revenue Taimour Hassan, and concluded that they had exceeded their authority and mandate.
According to the committee’s report, it was inappropriate for the Chairman NHA, Member Finance, and GM Revenue to issue directions for handing over the toll plazas at Pattoki, Phool Nagar, and Machi Goth to contractors Sardar Sarfaraz, Sher Zaman, and Ali Noor.
“They exceeded their powers by doing so. Passing verbal directions from the Headquarters to lower formations for handing over toll plazas to favourite contractors is illegal and unjustified,” the report stated.
The inquiry report also recommended blacklisting contractors Sardar Sarfaraz, Sher Zaman, Ali Noor, and Imran Dar, stating that no future contracts should be awarded to them.
The committee further identified multiple flaws in the NHA’s revenue collection system and recommended a forensic audit of the past 15 years of revenue collected through toll plazas and weigh stations to determine the extent of losses to the national exchequer.
It also recommended that revenue collection at toll plazas and weigh stations be outsourced to an independent third party equipped with a fully digital Electronic Toll and Traffic Management (ETTM) system.
According to the report, toll revenue collection should be taken out of the direct control of the NHA and entrusted to an independent entity responsible for collecting revenue and transferring it to the authority.
Expressing concern over the performance of officers serving in the NHA on deputation, the committee recommended that the Establishment Division appoint suitable officers on merit in the future rather than on the basis of nominations or requisitions by name.
The committee also highlighted irregularities in the Lyari Expressway project and directed that a Third-Party Validation (TPV) be conducted jointly by the Maintenance and Inspection (M&I) Team and the General Manager (Planning & Contract Administration) of the NHA to assess the quality of work executed under different project packages.
Furthermore, it recommended initiating proceedings to determine and recover losses to the public exchequer arising from inflated rates, overpayments, and payments made for work executed below the prescribed specifications in the Lyari Expressway project.
