PTI foreign funding case at ECP takes new turn

ISLAMABAD: The long-continuing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s foreign funding case at the Election Commission of Pakistan on Monday took a new turn, after the two nominees, including a representative from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, declined to be part of the scrutiny process of funds.

Hence, the first meeting of the scrutiny committee, formed by the Election Committee on March 12, could not be held. The committee has been asked to furnish its report in a month. The head of the committee and Director General Law of the Election Commission informed the petitioner, Akbar S Babar, and his counsel Badar Iqbal Chaudhry as well as the representatives of PTI that he has sought fresh instructions from the commission on how to proceed in the matter.

While deliberating on the process to be followed to scrutinise the PTI accounts, he explained that as per the orders of the ECP passed on March 12, a representative from each side would be present during the scrutiny of PTI accounts. He said the formation of a fresh ECP Scrutiny Committee would be decided in the next hearing of the foreign funding case scheduled for March 27, 2018.

The latest development has further delayed the foreign funding case first filed in November 2014 by the PTI founding member Akbar S Babar, alleging serious corruption and violation of relevant laws in managing the party funds. The case has been in limbo for months on one pretext or another, as PTI had repeatedly challenged the jurisdiction of ECP to scrutinize PTI accounts and the locus standi of Akbar S Babar.

The ECP twice rejected PTI objections to its jurisdiction in detailed judgments dated October 8, 2015 and again on May 8, 2017. Only last month, the IHC dismissed the latest PTI writ petition to stay proceedings in the ECP citing the Supreme Court Judgment that had categorically rejected all PTI objections to ECP scrutiny of its accounts in the foreign funding case filed against PTI.

Talking to the media after the meeting, Babar said that the matter of illegal foreign funding needed urgent attention and the ECP Scrutiny Committee should meet as early as possible to start scrutiny of PTI accounts.

He said there was overwhelming evidence of gross violation of laws in handling PTI accounts including registration of PTI in foreign countries, money received through ‘Hundi’ and deposited in the personal bank accounts of PTI employees as well PTI bank accounts concealed from the ECP.

Babar claimed he had brought fresh evidence of illegal foreign funding from the Middle East including videos of PTI leaders claiming receipt of crores of Rupees in the Middle East, money which has been concealed from the ECP.

The PTI veteran criticized PTI Chairman Imran Khan for bringing the politics of change into disrepute. He said when a party leader admits that almost half of his party’s MPAs in the KP had sold their votes and conscience during the Senate elections; he loses the moral right to lead that party.

He said the list of leadership failures of Imran Khan is long and make painful reading. He said starting with the fraudulent PTI intra party elections to auctioning of party tickets in the general elections which Imran Khan has admitted to allowing turncoats and dubious characters to join the party in leadership roles, the betrayal of the cause of change is long. He said after witnessing unprecedented double talk by PTI and Imran Khan, people are increasingly being disillusioned from politics of change.

“This trend must be addressed as Pakistan desperately needs change in leadership as well as a new ethos of principled politics. The repeated failure of Imran to act as a role model of change politics is jeopardizing hopes of change in Pakistan. He said Imran should have mercy on his party and demanded that he should resign as chairman of PTI and allow a Committee of PTI Founders and others to run the party affairs for an interim period. They should be entrusted to rejuvenate the party rank and file and purge it from rank opportunists and the corrupt. He said instead of blaming others, the time has come for Imran Khan to accept responsibility for allowing the PTI to drift from a party of change to a party of status quo.

For someone who never stops quoting Western leaders, he emphasised, Imran should resign and accept responsibility for his failure. Any western leader of any integrity would have done the same if his party members had sold their conscience to the highest bidder.

Babar said the recent Senate voting controversy, surrounding the party has further damaged the credibility of PTI as people want to know the circumstances that forced the hand of Imran Khan to vote for Asif Zardari’s candidates.

“Politics devoid of principles only helps building a chaotic society. Our drift towards greater chaos can only be stopped through principled politics. He said along with Imran the second tier leadership of PTI also cannot be absolved of blame for not standing up to Imran Khan and his imperial ways of decision making,” he maintained.