October 25, 2002	Friday	Sha’aban 18,1423

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, Oct 24: All the government departments and organizations including those concerned with defence procurements will have to provide a copy of documents of the contracts of above Rs 50 million to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), before the final award, a NAB spokesman said on Thursday.

The proposal of reviewing documents has been made as a part of National Antiorruption Strategy, which has already been approved by the president, the spokesman told a press conference on Thurs-day.

“It will be mandatory for all the departments to send copies of contract documents,” the NAB spokesman said, adding that a precedent had already been set by the PIA by providing documents of a deal.

The strategy formulated by the NAB was aimed at prevention of corruption. The National Accountability Bureau would launch an awareness campaign on a massive scale to apprise the people, particularly the younger generation about the damages being done by the corruption, he added.

Under this strategy NAB would focus on strengthening the internal controls of different government departments and organizations for checking the corruption.

Already there were enough internal checks and controls, only the implementation was to be ensured, he added.

The spokesman said a recently established Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) would assist the NAB in the review of the contracts and ensure transparency in there award.

The PPRA would lay down the broad parameters which each and every public department would have to observe in giving different contracts.

“The strategy will transform the role of the National Accountability Bureau from being an accountability body to an anti-corruption organization that would include prevention in addition to its role of accountability,” he added.

The National Accountability Bureau, in line with a cabinet decision, would shortly assume the economic crime wing and anti-crime wing of Federal Investigation Agency.

The spokesman said that anti-corruption establishment at the provincial level would continue to exist, however the NAB under the law had overriding powers over these provincial anti- corruption establishment.