ISLAMABAD – A subcommittee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Communications was informed on Tuesday that a single individual allegedly secured the majority of toll plaza contracts across the country by operating through multiple companies.
The meeting, chaired by Syed Hafeezuddin, also expressed concern over delays in the completion of development projects.
The officials of the National Highway Authority (NHA) told the committee that insufficient and delayed funding was a key reason behind the slow progress of infrastructure projects.
They said projects could be completed within the stipulated timeframe if financing was provided on time instead of being released in annual instalments.
The committee was informed that 109 toll plazas have been established nationwide, while the tendering process for 90 of them has been completed. According to NHA officials, 10 toll plazas have been awarded to the National Logistics Corporation (NLC), while the remaining contracts have been given to private companies.
During the meeting, the committee’s convener alleged that one individual had created multiple companies and secured most of the toll plaza contracts through them. He said the matter had been widely reported in the media and was well known in Sindh.
The committee directed the NHA to submit the complete tendering record for the toll plazas at its next meeting. It also summoned the NHA chairman and the secretary of the Ministry of Communications to appear before the committee.
The convener warned that if the two officials failed to attend the next meeting, the committee could initiate privilege proceedings against them.
The committee also sought detailed briefings on the Sukkur-Hyderabad Motorway project and the Port Qasim-to-M9 road project.
