ISLAMABAD, Aug 5: The Pakistan People’s Party on Saturday described the Friday judgement by the Isle of Man Court as victory of Asif Zardari and a setback for the National Accountability Bureau.

It also demanded that the politically motivated cases be withdrawn and that those who abused their position for corrupt purposes and even tried to subvert justice through perjury be held accountable.

The Party today released parts of the judgement of the Isle of Man High Court that ordered the government of Pakistan to pay the liquidator’s costs because the government of Pakistan has not been full and frank with the liquidator.

Rejecting the government’s claims to the property the Judge said while the government of Pakistan has made and continues to make propritorial claims to the Rockwood Estate and now the liquidation estates, such claims have not been proven.

About the allegations of illegality and corruption in the property the judge said, “I cannot conclude that there is evidence upon which it was just and reasonable for the liquidator to form a view that the monies used by the Bomer Finance Inc and others to finance the purchase and refurbishment of the Rockwood Estate were obtained as a result of the illegal acts of corruption whilst Mr Zardari held government office in Pakistan.”

About the award of indemnity the Judge said the test “was the case brought with ulterior motive, or for an improper collateral purpose, or in bad faith, has there been an abuse of the process of the court...such matters are merely examples and not exhaustive.”

About the conduct of the government of Pakistan the judge referred to, “particularly the pressure exerted on the liquidator, the control exerted by the government of Pakistan over the liquidator, the lack of frankness on the part of the govt of Pakistan. The judge then ordered payment of owners’ costs to be assessed on indemnity basis thus, lead me (the judge) to conclude that it is just to order that Mr Zardari’s costs should be assessed on an indemnity basis.”

In summary the judge ordered that the government of Pakistan should pay the liquidator part of his costs, that the government of Pakistan would pay the costs of the owners and the government of Pakistan would pay Mr Zardari’s costs.

In a statement on Saturday a spokesman of the Party said that the abuse of office by NAB in a malicious and politically motivated case has caused a loss of billions of rupees to the national exchequer that needed to be investigated. The costs ordered by the Isle of Man court are a tip of the iceberg in the vast fortunes spend in a decade long hounding of the Bhuttos and Zardari families with a view to destroying the democratic alternative in Pakistan and deny the people of Pakistan the freedom that they fought for, he said.

The PPP demands that the politically motivated cases be withdrawn and that those who abused their position for corrupt purposes and even tried to subvert justice through perjury be held accountable.