ISLAMABAD: A recent audit report by the Auditor General of Pakistan has revealed significant irregularities in the recruitment of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), resulting in a loss of over Rs 45 million to the exchequer.
AGP’s 2023-24 annual audit report on the telecom sector revealed that the PTA engaged in illegal recruitment during the 2022-23 financial year, including hiring one IT officer and two assistant directors at its head office without corresponding posts.
These recruitments were made despite the shortage of relevant posts, which was against the established rules of the service.
The audit highlights that the PTA paid Rs 45.9 million in salaries and allowances in violation of regulations. Furthermore, the recruitment process did not meet the advertised criteria. The report also said that most of the recruitments made in PTA did not meet the advertised criteria.
The PTA told the authorities that its chairman has the power to change the recruitment criteria. However, the audit authorities rejected the response as unsatisfactory. They said the PTA had done recruitment for posts which were not even vacant.
Furthermore, the PTA has ignored instructions to review the recruitment practices and submit a remedial report within a month and no progress report has been provided till date. The audit authorities ordered the PTA to conduct an investigation to identify those responsible for these violations.
This situation highlights serious governance issues within PTA and raises concerns about compliance with recruitment and financial management standards in public sector organisations. The aim of the investigation is to hold accountable those responsible for these financial irregularities and restore proper protocol in future recruitment processes.
