NAB ordinance

The federal government has started working on the new National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Amendment Ordinance after the expiration of the one issued in December 2019. In this regard, a committee has also been constituted to hold consultation with the opposition and coalition parties. Federal Minister for Planning Asad Umar, Minister for Law and Justice Faroogh Naseem, Babar Awan, Pervez Khattak, and Shehzad Akbar are part of the constituted committee.

The federal cabinet has approved the NAB Ordinance (Second Amendment) at the end of December 2019 and had a constitutional term of 120 days which expired last Friday.

The former fretful powers of NAB have been restored due to the expiration of NAB Amendment Ordinance 2019. A major challenge faced by the government because of the coronavirus pandemic was the parliamentary approval needed for amendments to NAB Ordinance as both houses of parliament are in recess to ensure social distancing.

The businessmen have long complained about NAB’s interference in business activities, even on tax-related matters. However, the amendments excluded all tax-related cases from the purview of NAB, with all respective inquiries, investigations, and trials transferred to the relevant agencies and courts.

Under the ordinance, NAB wasn’t allowed to take action against government employees. NAB wasn’t also allowed to seize the property of government officials without the orders of the court. Additionally, NAB had only been able to proceed in corruption cases of Rs500 million and more.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has stressed the need to revise the contested amendment as soon as possible. Since the expiration of the ordinance, businessmen and government officials are once again fearful of NAB actions.

The government is well aware that due to the immense powers of the NAB, the business community will not invest and the bureaucracy will not be able to perform its services freely. Therefore, the government is trying to reduce the power of the Accountability Bureau under an effective strategy to prevent the misuse of powers.

The government is working in good faith to provide legal protection to government employees and investors and for this purpose, the government is consulting with the opposition and allies. However, if there is no consensus on the draft amendment, the government may issue an ordinance like last year.

There is a stern need for the opposition parties to support the government on the draft amendment so that a better NAB ordinance can be presented.