The govt is considering a proposal to give more authority to the chief of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), months after it had reduced the bureau’s powers through amendments to its law.
Soon, a draft that will grant the NAB chairman the authority to transfer non-cognisable cases to relevant forums that cannot be tried in accountability courts will be presented to the federal cabinet by a govt source.
govt decides to further empower NAB chairman
The proposal specifies that the NAB chief will be authorized to close non-cognisable cases, and relevant departments will be empowered to initiate fresh investigations.
Furthermore, the proposal stipulates that cases from one accountability court cannot be transferred to another.
If the chairman of NAB is absent, their deputy chairman, an officer ranked equivalent to a lieutenant general or a major general of the army, will have the authority to exercise these powers.
If the deputy chairman is not available, the federal government may appoint any officer of NAB to exercise the chairman’s powers.
In addition, the proposal will categorise the Senate deputy chairman as a public office holder, and for the first time, they will come under the jurisdiction of NAB.
Before this proposal, the categorization of public office holders was limited solely to the Senate chairman.
This proposal comes two days after the appointment of retired Lt Gen Nazir Ahmad as the new NAB chairman for three years.
The new chairman replaced Aftab Sultan, who resigned last month citing “interference” and “pressure.”
Earlier,
The govt appointed, Lt-Gen. (Retd) Nazir Ahmed Butt, as the new chairman of the National Accountability Bureau.
The federal government issued a notification on Monday for the appointment of the new chairman of NAB.
PTI, nonetheless, rejected the appointment of the new chairman of the NAB, terming it an unlawful decision.
Read More: Lt-Gen. (Retd) Nazir Butt Appointed As NAB Chairman, PTI Rejects It
