An audit report has highlighted discrepancies in the privilege travel vouchers issued to Members of the National Assembly (MNAs), revealing a difference of Rs161 million between the issued vouchers and the officially reported expenditure for the financial years 2021-2024, The News reported.
According to the Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) report, the National Assembly Secretariat issued travel vouchers worth Rs1.16 billion during the specified period. However, the official expenditure, reported at Rs1 billion, did not match the actual amount spent on the reimbursement and encashment of these vouchers, which were processed by the State Bank of Pakistan and recorded by the Accountant General Pakistan Revenues (AGPR).
The report flagged this mismatch as “irregular and unauthorised,” pointing to weaknesses in the internal financial reporting controls within the National Assembly Secretariat.
The Departmental Accounts Committee (DAC), convened on January 31, 2025, has instructed the National Assembly management to reconcile the discrepancies and submit the relevant documentation for further scrutiny.
An official from the National Assembly Secretariat, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that reconciliation is in progress, though it is a time-consuming process. The official also noted that most of the pending reconciliation cases are related to MNAs from Sindh and Balochistan. When contacted for comment, the National Assembly Secretariat declined to provide a statement.
