Bilawal says can't appear for May 17 hearing, asks NAB to set another date

Published May 15, 2019
PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari writes letter to NAB, says he cannot appear due to "prior commitments". — DawnNewsTV/File
PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari writes letter to NAB, says he cannot appear due to "prior commitments". — DawnNewsTV/File

PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari has requested the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to reschedule the hearing that is to be held on May 17, Adviser to the Sindh Chief Minister on Information Barrister Murtaza Wahab said on Wednesday.

In a video message, Wahab said that the PPP chairperson has written a letter to NAB, explaining that he will not be able to appear before the bureau on May 17 — as was earlier planned — due to some "prior commitments". Therefore, Bilawal urged the anti-corruption watchdog to set another date in the coming week.

"The notice sent by NAB to Bilawal was dated May 8, but he received it on May 13," Wahab claimed. "Since Mr Bilawal had prior commitments, he has intimated NAB that it will not be possible for him to appear on May 17."

Yesterday, Bilawal's spokesperson Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar had insisted that the PPP chairperson would appear before NAB on May 17, and had rubbished rumours that he had not answered questions posed by the bureau.

Bilawal had last appeared before NAB on March 20, when he was grilled in three corruption cases: an alleged purchase and demarcation of a land in Islamabad by Park Lane Estates (Pvt) Limited — of which Bilawal was a minor shareholder — as well as a loan allegedly obtained by the firm.

Opinion

Editorial

Digital growth
Updated 25 Apr, 2024

Digital growth

Democratising digital development will catalyse a rapid, if not immediate, improvement in human development indicators for the underserved segments of the Pakistani citizenry.
Nikah rights
25 Apr, 2024

Nikah rights

THE Supreme Court recently delivered a judgement championing the rights of women within a marriage. The ruling...
Campus crackdowns
25 Apr, 2024

Campus crackdowns

WHILE most Western governments have either been gladly facilitating Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza, or meekly...
Ties with Tehran
Updated 24 Apr, 2024

Ties with Tehran

Tomorrow, if ties between Washington and Beijing nosedive, and the US asks Pakistan to reconsider CPEC, will we comply?
Working together
24 Apr, 2024

Working together

PAKISTAN’S democracy seems adrift, and no one understands this better than our politicians. The system has gone...
Farmers’ anxiety
24 Apr, 2024

Farmers’ anxiety

WHEAT prices in Punjab have plummeted far below the minimum support price owing to a bumper harvest, reckless...