ISLAMABAD - Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) has stirred a controversy after appointing the official allegedly named in National Accountability Bureau (NAB) inquiry as new head of the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), Friday. The ministry appointed Dr Sheikh Akhtar Hussain as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DRAP, who was already holding the charge as acting head of the department.
NAB Karachi had framed corruption charges against an official ranked as Assistant Controllers of Federal Drugs ‘Sheikh Akthar ‘. The NAB conducted inquires in 2001 and 2004 against the official and in both reports the official was declared deceased. However, the current CEO named ‘Sheikh Akhtar Hussain’ completely denied his involvement in any corruption case and claimed that Islamabad High Court (IHC) had dismissed the case against him after NAB withdrew its statement against him.
NAB in a statement issued in 2017 had stated that it was conducting an inquiry against DRAP official Dr ‘Sheikh Akhtar Hussain’ for having assets beyond means. NAB Chairman Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal had also directed the department to inquire the matter of declaring Dr ‘Sheikh Akhtar Hussain’ as a dead man in a reference filed earlier in NAB.
However, IHC order issued in 2017 had acquitted ‘Sheikh Akhtar Hussain’ from all charges framed in all NAB inquires. The notification issued by the ministry said that “With the approval of the federal government vide cabinet decision no.794/51/2018, Dr Sheikh Akhtar Hussain, is appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan under Ministry of NHS, R&C on contract basis for a period of three years, in terms of section-5 of the DRAP Act, 2012 with immediate effect”.
The documents available The Nation said that two references were filed before the Accountability Court at Karachi and Administrative Judge Accountability Courts Sindh in 2001 and 2004. In the 2001 reference, four assistant drug controller officers including Dr Tanveer Alam, Riaz Hussain Shiekh, Rehmatullah Baig, Abdul Sami Mangrio and ‘Sheikh Akhtar’ were framed with the charges that some drug/pharmaceutical companies were involved in large scale swindling of government revenue and were causing huge losses to the national exchequer by practicing fraud and forgery through evasion of government duties/taxes. The document said that the total loss to the national exchequer was Rs96752091 in respect of 388 consignments for clearance where the Assistant Drug Controllers of Federal Drug Control Administration issued a total number of 283 consumption certificates for the items for which consumption certificates were required. The remaining 103 consignments did not require the consumption certificates.
The documents said that the loss caused to the national exchequer by Dr Tanveer Alam was Rs46345638, Riaz Hussain Sheikh RS11, 397746, Rehmatullah Baig Rs 8188688, Abdul Sami Mangrio Rs7897650 and ‘Sheikh Akhtar’ Rs1016561. The NAB also mentioned ‘Sheikh Akhtar’ as dead in its report.
The report also said that the four accused persons being public servants were being sent up for trail for deliberately and wilfully causing wrongful loss to the public exchequer by misuse of authority which tantamount to corruption and corrupt practices as defined under the NAB ordinance 1999 and thus they were liable to be prosecuted under section 10 of the NAB ordinance 1999.
In the NAB reference filed in 2004 it was again reported that a drug company being manufacturers imported pharmaceutical raw material in connivance of four Assistant Controllers of Federal Drugs Control Administration Karachi under the shelter of two SROs i.e. Nos 349-1/85 and 11471/89 issued by the Central Board of Revenue providing various exemptions of duties and sales tax: On receipt of information that the accused in collusion with Assistant Drug Controllers indulge in corruption and corrupt practices the investigation was authorized.
The document said that Dr Tanveer Alam caused Rs46245638 loss to the national exchequer, Riaz Hussain Shiekh Rs11297746, Rehmatullah Baig Rs38188688, Abdul Sami Mangrio and ‘Sheikh Akhtar’ Rs 51016561. Once again ‘Sheikh Akhtar’ was declared deceased in the NAB investigation report.
The report stated, “The evidence collected during investigation establishes that the accused by not fulfilling his obligation under the plea bargain has fortified the amount of Rs7million deposited towards down payment and has become liable for criminal prosecution for the main offence committed by them in connivance with convicts Dr Tanveer Alam and others. The accused by corrupt, dishonest and illegal means obtained for themselves pecuniary advantage on account of misuse of authority by the above named accused who stand convicted”.
The ministry in 2017 assigned Sheikh Akhtar Hussain the posts of Director Medical Devices and Medicated Cosmetics and also Director Quality Assurance and Laboratory Testing. In July 2017 he was also assigned the duties of Director Admin in DRAP. CEO DRAP Dr Sheikh Akhtar Hussain talking to The Nation denied all the allegations of facing NAB inquiry and rescuing his name from the reference by declaring himself a deceased person. He said that a false and fabricated campaign was launched against him by groups whose interests were damaged in a drive against fake and illicit medicines. He said that he was framed wrongly in the NAB inquiry, while the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has also cleared him from the charges. The ministry in its statement issued said that IHC had dismissed all allegations levelled against CEO DRAP Sheikh Akthar Hussain in writ petition 3385/2017. The statement said that NAB in IHC has clearly said that the name inclusion of Sheikh Akhtar Hussain’s name in the inquiry was a typographical mistake. It said that NAB admitted that wrong information was provided in the inquiry and Sheikh Akhtar Hussain was declared deceased in the report.