Will recover each and every looted penny: Justice Javed Iqbal

LAHORE: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) will neither allow anyone to rob the national wealth nor give any concession to any corrupt person, said Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal here on Monday.

Speaking at a function held at the Aiwan-e-Iqbal here, the NAB chairman said every penny of the national wealth, looted by the corrupt, would be taken back from them. He said it is a wrong impression that NAB is hampering the country's progress. The NAB does not believe in creating any hurdles in the national development, and it is doing its work in accordance with the law, he added.

He said the menace of corruption is eating into the vitals of the country like a termite. “We are trying to work in a friendly manner to rid the country of corruption.” He made it clear that NAB is ready to cooperate with any person willing to serve honestly and work without indulging in corruption.

Expressing his resolve about taking decisive steps against corruption, Justice Javed Iqbal said he would do whatever he deems fit in accordance with the law and does not care about what others make of it. “We are trying to serve the country to the best of our abilities. Making the country corruption-free is not just the job of NAB but of everyone in the society,” he added. “Our efforts are aimed at paying off Pakistan’s debt,” he added.

Earlier, while chairing a meeting at the NAB Lahore office, Justice (retd) Javed Iqbal said the Bureau was committed to eradicating corruption from the country and directed his staff to double their efforts to nab all the accused involved in corruption cases. He reviewed the overall performance of NAB Lahore, especially regarding progress in the mega corruption cases under process at the NAB's Lahore office.

According to a press release, the DG NAB Lahore gave a detailed briefing to the chairman on the performance of Lahore office, especially progress on mega corruption cases. The chairman said NAB would deal with the corrupt elements with an iron hand without any discrimination while adopting zero tolerance towards corruption. He said NAB has been virtually rejuvenated to eradicate corruption from the country.

The NAB chairman directed the DG NAB Lahore to take the corrupt to the courts, extract the looted money from them and deposit it in the national exchequer as per the law. Javed Iqbal directed the DG NAB Lahore to dispose of the corruption cases, including mega scams expeditiously on the basis of solid evidence without any delay and taking any external pressure. The chairman also appreciated the performance of NAB Lahore under the supervision of DG NAB Lahore and directed all the officers to redouble their efforts in nabbing the corrupt, proclaimed offenders and absconders.