‘Stolen state funds used to buy land’: AGO given until April’s end to submit key bill

The Public Accounts Committee has given the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) until the end of April to submit an asset recovery bill to the Parliament, as the committee expressed concern on Monday that millions of Rufiyaa in stolen state funds have been invested in purchasing land and apartments in Hulhumale’.

The key bill was drafted by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) with assistance from international consultants. The ACC has submitted the draft bill to thee AGO, which has yet to finish its review and submit it to the Parliament.

During a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee on Monday, Deputy Speaker Ahmed Nazim said that the committee must “first and foremost”, find a way to recover assets purchased with stolen state funds.

Nazim, a politician from the ruling People’s National Congress (PNC), said that the committee’s current inquiry into corruption by Police Corporative Society (POLCO) has uncovered that “illicitly obtained money” was used to purchase a plot of land from Hulhumale’ for MVR 15 million. He said the land was later re-sold for MVR 12 million – far lower than it was originally purchased for.

Nazim said this was carried out by a director at POLCO who is involved in the company’s ‘Blues Housing Project’ corruption scandal.

 “All this illicitly obtained money is invested in land and apartments in Hulhumale’. Our inquiry into the POLCO case uncovered that immediately after POLCO took the money, one of the company’s directors purchased a land from Hulhumale’ for MVR 15 million,” he said.

Nazim stressed that there is an urgent need to expedite the enactment of asset recovery laws.

He noted that such a bill can only be submitted to the Parliament by the government as it involves financial mechanisms.

The committee has asked the AGO to submit the bill by the end of April.

“That way, if we can enact this law before the Parliament does into recess on May 15 at the end of the current session, it will allow us to trace and recover assets purchased using money that is illicitly obtained from state institutions and other institutions,” said Nazim.

Nazim added that top officials at POLCO at the time it was awarded the contract for the ‘Blues Housing Project’ purchased penthouse apartments from a luxury apartment building developed in Hulhumale’ by Renaatus, a subsidiary of India’s RPP Group.

Nazim said there was enough evidence to prove it, but did not elaborate any further.

The Public Accounts Committee initiated its inquiry into POLCO after an audit report released in January uncovered losses amounting to MVR 354.7 million due to POLCO’s “corruption and incompetence” in the 2013 police housing project ‘Blues Housing Project’.

The audit uncovered that the project – which should have cost MVR 745.3 million or MVR 859.9 million at the most based on average market price – cost over MVR 1 billion.

The Auditor General’s Office recommended action against top officials at POLCO, including board directors.

The committee’s inquiry has also uncovered irregularities in the award of a 10-year catering contract worth MVR 350 million.