ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Sunday said that “Avenfield apartments were being bought in London when the contract for Lahore and Islamabad motorway was being signed”.
The statement was made during a joint press conference of federal ministers Chaudhry and Murad Saeed in Islamabad.
Chaudhry said that “Zardari and Sharif families took money from Pakistan and invested it outside” the country.
“It is said that these families have hid the money in Russia,” he added.
The minister said that “Opposition is shedding crocodile tears but it is because of them that Pakistan is in such a condition”.
“Major corruptions has been committed in the name of contracts of roads and thoroughfares,” said Chaudhry.
He said that “the former prime minister conspired with the Cabinet to commit corruption”.
“Rs25 billion were transferred to the accounts of Shahbaz Sharif and family through the accounts of peons and cracker sellers,” Chaudhry alleged.
‘No development without roads’
“Prime Minister Imran Khan has stood against corruption that was committed in the name of roads,” he said.
“However, motorways must be built as there is no concept of development without roads,” Chaudhry added.
Speaking about loans taken by the previous governments, Chaudhry said that taking loans to pay back previous loans “reduces autonomy and increases inflation”.
PML-N, PPP ‘wasted’ money
Meanwhile, federal Minister for Communications Murad Saeed said in his address that PM Imran Khan has always opposed the construction of roads with money obtained through loans.
Comparing PTI’s government with that of the PML-N and PPP, Saeed said that “PTI built roads cheaper by up to Rs200 million per kilometre than those built by PML-N”.
“Double roads constructed by PTI were Rs120mn cheaper than that of PPP, and Rs60mn cheaper than that of PML-N,” he Saeed.
He said that PPP and PML-N “wasted the people’s money” which could have been invested in the education and health sectors.
‘Corruption money must be recovered’
Chaudhry said that the money “wasted in corruption” must be recovered.” Ministry of Communications will take the matter of corruption under the construction of roads to the assembly and Public Accounts Committee,” said Chaudhry. While commenting on the increase in petrol prices, Chaudhry said that the government must invest money from the national treasury if they want to bring the petrol prices to Rs60 per litre but “where will it get the money from to invest?”
