GUJAR KHAN: Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry on Saturday said the government would not consult opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif on the nomination of the next National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman.

Talking to mediapersons in Jhelum, Mr Chaudhry said: “if we ask Shehbaz Sharif about who should be the next NAB chairman, it would be like asking a thief who should be his investigator.”

Fawad Chaudhry was visiting Jhelum to greet the candidates ofPakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) who had swept the Jhelum Cantonment Board elections.

The minister said the law minister and attorney general were trying to sort out the issue, but it had been decided that Shehbaz Sharif would not be consulted on NAB chairman’s appointment.

Says prime minister to inaugurate Kharrian-Islamabad motorway project in November

Mr Chaudhry said Kharrian-Islamabad motorway project would be inaugurated by Prime Minister Imran Khan in November.

The motorway will shorten the distance between Lahore and Islamabad by 100km and lead to uplift of areas including Rawat, Gujar Khan, Sohawa, Dina, Jhelum, Lala Musa, Wazirabad and Kharrian.

Commenting on the recent speech of Prime Minister Imran Khan at the United Nations General Assembly, the minister said he represented the people of Pakistan.

“The way the prime minister presented the case of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) people and the way he challenged Narendra Modi, this has never happened in Pakistan before,” he said.

He alleged the former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, accumulated personal wealth by looting public money.

“Now Nawaz Sharif and Ashraf Ghani are living the same kind of life, one is in London while the other is staying in Dubai and both flew abroad with sacks filled with dollars,” he said.

Mr Chaudhry said the PTI had vote bank in Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, Gilgit and Mirpur, claiming that PTI would get two-third majority in the next general elections.

“During the visit of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari to south Punjab, he offered each person Rs50 million to contest local government election on PPP’s ticket,” said Mr Chaudhry, adding that “the next election of PPP and PML-N is going to be their last because they would not remain in a position to contest elections and PTI would emerge as the single national political party”.

With regard to cancellation of England cricket series in Pakistan, the minister said even the English cricket team criticised its board’s decision.

“They said the board took the decision without consulting them,” he said.

Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2021