ISLAMABAD, July 20: National Accountability Bureau Chairman Lt-Gen Munir Hafiz said on Saturday that under the proposed reforms the NAB was accountable to the National Security Council.

He said the NSC being the supreme body in the proposed amendments package would have a monitoring role over the NAB. In a brief talk with the mediamen, he said the scope of the NAB was being widened by increasing its interaction with the Federal Investigations Agency.

Moreover, he said the proposal to merge the banking and investigation departments of FIA into NAB was also being considered.

Answering a question regarding recovery of fine money from the Sharif family, the NAB chairman said there were problems in the process of repayment by them but now the representative of the family, Hamza Shahbaz, had assured the NAB to carry out prompt payment of instalments. Now the process of payment is smooth, he said.

To another question regarding extradition pact with the UK, he said considerable headway had been made in this regard and more cooperation would be seen between the two countries in the days to come.

When his attention was drawn towards the rearrest of former naval chief Mansurul Haq, Lt-Gen Munir Hafiz said he had been arrested in another corruption case that relates to the purchase of three ships for Pakistan National Shipping Corporation during his term in the office of the Chief of the Naval Staff. He (Mansur) had been alleged to have received kickbacks in finalizing the deals of the three ships.—APP