Audit report flags Rs320 million financial irregularities in NAB

Pakistan's Audit Report 2025-26 has identified financial irregularities exceeding Rs320 million in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), raising

Pakistan’s Audit Report 2025-26 has identified financial irregularities exceeding Rs320 million in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), raising concerns over the organization’s financial management and compliance with government rules.

According to the audit findings, NAB Headquarters made payments worth Rs277.9 million in violation of financial regulations. Auditors said the bureau used its regular budget to cover expenditures that should have been paid through the Recovery and Reward Fund, a dedicated fund established for specific operational expenses.

The report stated that millions of rupees were spent on payments to legal officers, consultants, advisers and technical experts. Auditors maintained that these expenditures should have been made from the Recovery and Reward Fund instead of the regular budget. They argued that using the regular budget defeated the purpose of the special fund and was inconsistent with the applicable financial rules.

The audit described the explanation provided by NAB management as unsatisfactory. It criticized the bureau for failing to follow the prescribed financial procedures and recommended that NAB immediately implement the Recovery and Reward Rules to ensure transparency and proper use of public funds.

The report also pointed to financial irregularities at NAB Peshawar. It revealed that Rs46.9 million recovered from accused persons was not deposited into the national treasury. Instead, auditors stated that the amount was deposited into the NAB chairman’s personal account, a practice they termed inconsistent with legal and financial requirements.

According to the report, government revenue must be deposited into the official state treasury. Keeping such funds in any other account was described as unlawful and deprived the national exchequer of revenue that should have been credited to government accounts.

Auditors rejected the explanation submitted by NAB Peshawar and recommended that the recovered amount be transferred to the government treasury without further delay. They also called for corrective measures to prevent similar financial irregularities in the future.