ISLAMABAD(National times)- National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Lt Gen (R) Nazir Ahmed said on Wednesday that the bureau has adopted a clear principle, adding that no one\u2019s reputation will be maligned. The NAB chairman held his first formal interaction with senior journalists in Islamabad, which was attended by Deputy Chairman Justice (R) Sohail Nasir, DG NAB Rawalpindi-Islamabad Waqar Chauhan, DG Operations Amjad Aulakh, and other senior officials. During the detailed question-and-answer session, Lt Gen (R) Ahmed discussed the bureau\u2019s two-and-a-half-year performance, the identification of influential figures involved in corruption, institutional reforms, governance improvements, and other key public interest matters. He revealed that NAB had achieved a record recovery of Rs8,397 billion in the past two and a half years, compared to Rs883 billion recovered over the previous 23 years. \u201cNo institution in the world has a better recovery rate than NAB,\u201d he added, noting that the bureau has now gone completely paperless. The NAB chief confirmed that an inquiry has been initiated into the statement made by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi. He clarified that NAB does not summon ministers or parliamentarians directly, as special facilitation desks have been established in speakers\u2019 offices, chief secretaries\u2019 offices, and business chambers. He stated that complaints against government officers and businesspersons are processed only after responses from the relevant desks. \u201cMany countries that lecture us on ethics offer no cooperation and have themselves become hubs of money laundering,\u201d he remarked. Lt Gen (R) Ahmed said that NAB had revised its SOPs over the past two and a half years, while Parliament had approved two major amendments to the NAB law. \u201cOur purpose is not to spread fear, but to hold accountable those involved in looting national assets,\u201d he said, adding that NAB now investigates cases involving embezzlement exceeding Rs500 million. He further stated that cases against officers facilitating fraud were forwarded to the respective governments, and discouraging fake and anonymous complaints had reduced the burden of unnecessary cases. On real estate reforms, the NAB chief said that sellers, buyers, and regulators will now all be held accountable. \u201cThe file-trading system has been abolished, only genuine plots can now be bought or sold,\u201d he added. He highlighted that NAB\u2019s efforts led to the withdrawal of the Peshawar BRT corruption case from an international court, saving the national exchequer Rs168 billion. He stressed that facilitators of corrupt money and property purchases are the real culprits, and that countries claiming to champion transparency often serve as protectors of corruption. Lt Gen (R) Ahmed termed money laundering facilitation the \u201cmost horrifying form of corruption,\u201d adding that offshore companies and political asylums hinder action against corrupt elements. He said that instead of mutual legal cooperation, local laws are often misused to protect such individuals. Addressing misconceptions, he clarified that in plea bargain cases, NAB usually recovers more than the original amount and dismissed as \u201centirely false\u201d the notion that NAB retains a share from these settlements.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD(National times)- National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Lt Gen (R) Nazir Ahmed said on Wednesday that the bureau has adopted a clear principle, adding that no one\u2019s reputation will be maligned. The NAB chairman held his first formal interaction with senior journalists in Islamabad, which was attended by Deputy Chairman Justice (R) Sohail Nasir, DG […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":114798,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-114797","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n