KARACHI: The Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal inaugurated Investigation Wing -11 located at Balochistan House, Karachi.While addressing NAB investigation officers at the Karachi Regional Bureau, the NAB Chairman quoted the Quaid-e-Azam on Muhammad Ali Jinnah who in his address to the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan had termed bribery and corruption as “one of the biggest curses. That really is a poison. We must put it down with an iron hand”.Javed Iqbal said the NAB was established to fight and eradicate corruption in a holistic and integrated manner. He said NAB’s operational methodology involves three stages of complaint verification, inquiry and investigation. The NAB’s officials need to follow a strict code of conduct and must adhere to a zero tolerance policy against corruption. He said from 2017 we reinvigorated the NAB and moved with new zeal and effort. He said in order to stop the possibility of any single NAB officer or official influencing the discharge of official business, the concept of a “Combined Investigation Team” was introduced where two investigation officers and a legal consultant work as a team for a fair, transparent and unbiased, inquiry and investigation. To ensure objectivity and standardization across the board, the Standing Operating Procedures (SOPs) were examined and revisited through a participative exercise spread over four months for upgradation and implementation. These SOPs are displayed on NAB’s website for convenience of all individuals interacting with NAB.Iqbal said the NAB’s preamble emphasizes on recovery of the looted money if the accused is willing to return it. He said under the plea bargain the accused is required to pay the full amount ‘determined’ on the basis of KIBOR (Karachi Interbank Offered Rate). The plea bargain request is always submitted for approval in the respective accountability court. Deemed as a conviction, the plea bargain has other implications for the accused who will be debarred from holding a public office, a government servant will lose his job, and a businessman will be debarred from obtaining loan facility from banks for 10 years.The NAB chairman said an effective accountability mechanism is quintessential for economic growth, investment and stability of the social order. The intervention by NAB has acted as a catalyst, as transparency is a prerequisite for promoting investment and economic growth. Since its inception, NAB has adopted enforcement based approach in its fight against corruption. He said a special focus is being given to awareness and prevention activities besides enforcement to educate the people about the ill effects of corruption. He termed fighting corruption as a challenging task. The NAB chairman said serious efforts to combat corruption have been started with the realization that it is our collective social responsibility which would result in common good. He said NAB is determined to a corruption free Pakistan and we the citizens of Pakistan refuse to tolerate or accept corruption as a way of life.Earlier, Director-General Brigadier (retd) Farooq Naseer Awan highlighted NAB Karachi’s performance since October 11, 2018. Awan said that NAB Karachi in the last one year has almost tripled its performance than previous years. There is an emphasis on disposal of high profile cases and in just one year the bureau has filed 37 references in courts.The Chairman NAB, Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal lauded the performance of NAB Karachi for its excellent performance under the supervision of Brigadier (retd) Farooq Awan.
from The News International - National https://ift.tt/2JfBfxl
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