Fact-check: Yes, Punjab Ombudsperson spent millions on high-end phones

Online users are sharing an image of a receipt that allegedly shows the office of the Ombudsperson in Punjab spent over Rs 7 million of public money to buy seven iPhones 15 Pro Max and five Samsung S24 Ultra phones.

Some users are questioning the authenticity of the sales receipt.

The claim is true. The office of the Ombudsperson in Punjab has indeed purchased the expensive phones.

Claim

The alleged sales tax invoice being shared online, dated May 2, indicates that the office of the Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Punjab bought 12 mobile phones worth Rs7,687, 380.56 from a Lahore-based store.

This includes five Samsung S24 Ultra 512GB and seven Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max 512GB.

According to the invoice, the price of one Samsung S24 Ultra is listed as Rs444,734.00, while the price of one Apple iPhone 15 is Rs 613,084.47.

Similar claims have been shared on social media here, here and here.

Fact

Abdul Basit Khan, the media advisor at the office of the Ombudsperson Punjab in Lahore, confirmed to Geo Fact Check that the claims were true.

“As per the information provided to me, the phones have been bought," he said over the phone.

He then claimed that the phones were needed by officers to deal with "complicated information" coming through its management information system from overseas. However, Khan did not elaborate on the kind of "complicated information" which required high-end phones.

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