Not afraid of NAB, says Pak’s Interior Minister

While speculations are rife that the government is considering curtailing powers of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), key cabinet ministers said on Sunday there were no plans to limit the mandate of the country’s apex corruption watchdog.

“This institution was created by former dictator General Pervez Musharraf to target PML-N and the previous PPP government too used it against PML-N but if the bureau could not bring anything against my party in those years, how can they do it today”, Nisar told a press conference. He said that some notable businessmen had complained to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that NAB was frightening him and in the perspective of these complaints, the premier had voiced his desire to transform NAB into a more cohesive and systematic institution, said Nisar, adding that the statement of the prime minister should be perceived in the perspective of making NAB an effective institution.

He said EOBI, PSO, Abandoned Properties Evacuee Trust, New Islamabad Airport, PIA, and other major scams emerged during previous PPP government.

The Sindh government has made a decision to request the centre to constitute a judicial commission to examine the actions taken by the Federal Investigation Agency in the province.

“The PML-N government is ready for giving a briefing to all opposition parties, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) on these scams”.

“The provincial government has its own mechanism to take action against corruption in its departments”.

Commenting on Nawaz Sharif’s remarks, PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said the FIA was also doing the same against the PPP. The minister said hundreds of National and Database Registration Authority (Nadra) employees were terminated due to their involvement in illegal distribution of ID cards and cases were registered.

“I have presented my two-and-half-year performance for judicial scrutiny”. “This was the background of the prime minister’s statement”. He recommended to increase the salaries and other benefits of FIA officials.

In reply to a question, the opposition leader said he was not aware that the NAB chairman had refused to meet the prime minister.

“Our investigation team will reach India within the next few days”, he said. The Indian government has agreed to allow Pakistan’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) to visit Pathankot, he added.

Talking about Pathankot attack investigation, the PML-N stalwart said that some arrests had been made in the case but it wasn’t necessary to make clear announcements about them. In the coming weeks, a meeting among provincial chief ministers and the government would be held to take steps for improved police, he concluded.