ISLAMABAD: In 2019, when everyone from the prime minister to the president to federal ministers were keeping the gifts they received during their foreign visits, two low-ranking security personnel – a constable and a sepoy set an example by depositing the gifts in Toshakhana.
In December 2019, Sepoy Atiqur Rehman – SSG Gunman and Constable Malik Qasim Mehmood were gifted wristwatches of Paul Picot company worth Rs 120,000, the Toshakhana report issued by the Cabinet Division said. The two security personnel deposited the gifts in the Toshakhana. In December 2019, Prime Minister Imran Khan visited Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
Several interesting incidents are reflected in the report. One such example is that of former Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervez Elahi who was gifted a tractor, a motorcycle and a buffalo along with a calf. He declared the gifts but did not collect them or pay the maintenance fee.
A perusal of the report reveals that most government officials who received valuable and expensive gifts kept them to themselves. While less valuable gifts are either deposited in the Toshakhana or auctioned by the government. More than 90 percent of the gifts revealed in the report were kept by officials who received them during their foreign tours.
During the regime of former military dictator Pervez Musharraf, General (retd) Pervez Musharraf, the then prime minister, ministers, military officers accompanying the then rulers kept 97% of the gifts received by government officials. A total of 2,249 gifts have been announced with Toshakhana from 2002 to 2008, of which around 70 gifts have been auctioned. The rest of the gifts were kept by the officials.
The report states that in 2002, a total of 257 gifts were declared with the Toshakhana, of which about a dozen were auctioned and the rest were kept by the authorities. In 2003, 290 gifts were announced, of which about 14 were auctioned and the rest were kept.
The report further states that 350 gifts were announced in 2004 out of which only 7 were auctioned. In 2005, 475 gifts were announced, of which about 8 were auctioned and the rest kept by government officials. In 2006, 381 prizes were announced, of which about 20 were auctioned.
A total of 381 gifts were declared in 2007, of which about 6 were auctioned while the rest were retained by government officials. In 2008, 115 gifts were announced with the Toshakhana, of which very few were auctioned.
From 2002 to 2008, former military dictator General (retd) Pervez Musharraf was the highest recipient of these gifts. While some ministers including Jahangir Khan Tareen, Shaukat Aziz, Umar Ayub etc. had deposited most of the gifts in Toshakhana during Musharraf’s era.
