Power Minister Says ‘Strict Action’ Taken After Asif’s Corruption Allegations Against LESCO Employees

ISLAMABAD: Power Minister Awais Leghari said that 'strict action' had been taken against a Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) line superintendent following a complaint by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif regarding financial corruption, emphasizing that the government believes in self-accountability.

It is pertinent to mention here that in an X post on Saturday, Khawaja Asif said he had sought a former official’s help for the repair of a transformer in the village of his domestic employee.

The Defence Minister alleged, “[Lesco] employees took Rs 80,000 to repair the transformer. The villager collected donations to pay the Lesco employees, but they were not given a receipt, he added.

“You can imagine the rest. This happens even when a former power minister, who is currently a cabinet member, intervenes. What will a common consumer be facing?” he asked. He reiterated that while the villagers had paid the amount, “Lesco refuses to give them a receipt”.

Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, the Power Minister referred to Asif’s statement and said, “The tweet is a source of pride for us as we believe in self-accountability.” He said that “strict action” has been taken against the relevant line superintendent after Asif’s post.

“This is a part of our self-accountability and it’s the public representative’s job to highlight people’s problems,” the minister asserted. “Even if anyone raises questions from within our cabinet, we address them publicly and will continue trying to improve our performance in the future,” he added.

When a reporter remarked that almost all common people faced this kind of corruption, Leghari denied it emphatically. “It is absurd and totally wrong to say that everybody goes through this”, he added. Leghari also acknowledged that while corruption existed within Discos, “the prevalence cannot be more than 10-15 per cent”. He said that the ministry had a complaint system and “will improve with time”.