ISLAMABAD: Acting Chairman of the Senate Saleem Mandviwalla on Thursday barred senators from appearing before the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) or any other investigative body without intimating the chairman office.

The deputy chairman informed the members that he had written a letter to NAB Chairman retired Justice Javed Iqbal, drawing his attention to the Senate rules which made it binding upon him to inform the Senate chairman before summoning any member of the house for investigation along with the “facts and the reasons” for it.

“No senator should appear before NAB without taking permission from the [Senate] chairman office,” Mr Mandviwalla said while informing the house that he had also written letters to each senator in this regard. “If NAB forces you to come, make it clear that it should communicate with the [Senate] chairman office.”

Shibli Faraz opposes deputy chairman’s move; Zafarul Haq wants bureau chairman summoned before house committee

The deputy chairman made the disclosure after the opposition members blasted the anti-graft watchdog for allegedly becoming a tool in the hands of the government in carrying out their political victimisation through media trial.

Opposing the deputy chairman’s move, Leader of the House Shibli Faraz said they should not send a message that they were against the accountability process as it would bring a bad name to the politicians and parliamentarians.

Mr Mandviwalla, however, said no one was against accountability, but laws and rules of the house must be followed in letter and spirit.

Former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani appreciated Mr Mandviwalla for this move and read out the relevant rule which says: “When a member is summoned by or required to appear before any commission, tribunal, authority, organisation, agency or other, for any investigation or inquiry, as the case may be, the Chairman shall be informed of the same. The concerned authority shall intimate the brief facts/reasons.”

Leader of the Opposition Raja Zafarul Haq said the NAB chairman should be summoned before a house committee as a mere letter would not serve any purpose.

The deputy chairman, however, said let the NAB chief respond to his letter and then he would see what this house could do further.

NAB came under sharp criticism in the Senate when National Party Senator Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo moved a privilege motion against the bureau for allegedly issuing to the media a statement accusing him and Dr Abdul Malik of purchasing properties worth billions of rupees in six districts of Punjab during the time when Nawaz Sharif was prime minister and Dr Malik was chief minister of Balochistan.

Requesting the chair to refer the motion to a committee, Mr Bizenjo said NAB had also implicated his wife, daughter and even nephews in the case, claiming that it had acquired “sufficient documents” to substantiate the charges.

Reading out the alleged NAB statement appeared in some newspapers amid slogans of “shame shame” by his colleagues, Mr Bizenjo said that according to the bureau, he owned a number of agro farms, commercial plazas and petrol pumps in six Punjab districts, including Vehari, Sialkot and Sheikhupura.

Challenging NAB to prove its charges, Mr Bizenjo, who had served as the ports and shipping minister in the previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government, said he was even ready to appear before a committee consisting of all members of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf.

Regretting that he had also “unfortunately” played a role in the appointment of the incumbent NAB chairman, Mr Bizenjo said he had supported the former because he belonged to Balochistan.

Senator Mushahidullah Khan claimed that besides NAB, some ministers were also involved in carrying out media trial of the opposition leaders. He alleged that NAB was carrying out one-sided accountability as it had arrested Shahbaz Sharif, Saad Rafique and Salman Rafique, whereas it had not taken into custody Prime Minister Imran Khan, his sister Aleema Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mehmood Khan and Defence Minister Pervez Khattak despite the fact that they all were facing NAB inquiries.

When the leader of the house agreed that there should be no media trial of anyone, Mr Khan asked him to at least stop his government ministers from doing so.

Earlier, during the question hour, Minister of State for Interior Shehryar Afridi told the house that the US had made no request to Pakistan to hand over Dr Shakeel Afridi, who is presently in prison for his alleged role in the killing of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in 2011.

Mr Afridi was responding to a question by Senator Muzaffar Hussain Shah who said that reports were emerging that the US had asked Pakistan to extradite Dr Afridi.

Published in Dawn, December 20th, 2018