Public Accounting Committee (PAC) of the Parliament has formed a sub-committee to investigate the financial irregularities in Nepal Airlines Corporation’s (NAC) process of procuring two wide body Airbus A330 series aircraft.
PAC has formed sub-probe committee having 7 members led by lawmaker Rajendra KC.
PAC has demanded the panel to submit its report with the findings of the Office of the Auditor General and the PPMO within 15 days.
Bharat Shah , Chairman of PAC stated that the formed sub-committee will submit its reports after studying each and every phases of the procuring processes from the beginning to end. PAC will take action depending on the panel report, he added.
Similarly, PAC has also called Rabindra Adhikari, Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA) and high officials of NAC over irregularities in the purchasing process of NAC.
Earlier , PAC summoned Tourism Minister Rabindra Adhikari, Tourism Secretary Krishna Prasad Devkota, Executive Chairman of NAC Madan Kharel and NAC’s Managing Director Sugat Ratna Kansakar to discuss the issue.
According to THT, the sub-panel of the Parliamentary International Relations Committee has already started probing the controversial procurement, ownership and operation of two wide-body aircraft purchased by NAC.
Previously, PAC asked the Public Procurement Monitoring Office (PPMO) of NAC to report with the opinion by giving ultimatum of 7 days. According to that, Procurement official submitted the report on Monday (December 11). PPMO has discovered that NAC has broken procurement law while purchasing two Airbus A330 as the corporation bought without tender calls.
In the report, it has mentioned that the corporation made deal of purchasing aircraft simply on the basis of a Request for Proposals (RFP). Under the Public Procurement Act, the company must make tender calls for buying of goods and services.
In the report, it has mentioned that the corporation made deal of purchasing aircraft simply on the basis of a Request for Proposals (RFP). Under the Public Procurement Act, the company must make tender calls for buying of goods and services.
Similarly, PPMO found another error regarding the pact done between NAC and Airbus Company. NAC has calculated the estimated price of Airbus which was mentioned eight years ago.
According to source of PAC, NAC calculated the price based on annual cost increments since eight years ago when NAC had invited tender bids for narrow-body planes. PAC has suspected the fraud of Rs 6 billion in the wide-body aircraft purchase.
According to the report, NAC board decided to buy brand new aircraft, later NAC management twisted the conditions and settle to purchase the aircraft which has flown for 1000 flight hours.
