‘Govt has no influence over NAB’

LAHORE: Disassociating itself from a National Accountability Bureau (NAB) raid on the residence of Punjab PA Opposition Leader Hamza Shahbaz, the PTI leadership on Friday stated that the government has no influence over the NAB.

Addressing a joint press conference here, Nadim Afzal Gondal, spokesman to the prime minister, and Dr Shahbaz Gill, spokesman to the Punjab chief minister, said the NAB is an independent institution and the Sharifs will have to answer questions concerning their wealth and assets. “I still believe they are facing a VIP trial, I still believe it was not a serious effort by the NAB. If the speaker Sindh Assembly can be arrested from Islamabad, Hamza Shahbaz should have surrendered after receiving a call from the NAB,” said Gondal while responding to a question related to the allegations of political victimization leveled by the PML-N against the PTI government.

He said Hamza should have surrendered and being the opposition leader in the Punjab Assembly, he should have proven himself a role model before the nation. He said as a political worker, he believed that favour has been given to Hamza. He said none of the cases faced by the PML-N leadership were made by the PTI, adding that if they have any difference with the NAB or any other institution, it should take up the issue in the parliament. The PTI is ready to hold negotiations over all legal issues including the reforms in the judicial system as well as the charter of economy.

“We don’t believe in victimization at all. Like a fish can’t survive without water, PML-N leaders can’t live without power, they have to rely on the institutions to do politics,” said Nadim Afzal Gondal while criticizing the Sharifs. He went on to say that Hamza Shahbaz was holding a press conference and mentioned about his newborn daughter, but he is forgetting that how the daughter of a former prime minister was disrespected by the Sharifs against whom they launched a campaign, published pamphlets and sent her to prison. He said having come out of the government, the PML-N leadership was in distress but this couldn’t save them from the process of accountability. If the Sharifs thought they were honest and made wealth through fair means, they should prove it.

Dr Gill said the government had no concern with the NAB which is an independent institution. He said that time and again, the PTI asked the NAB to take ‘proper’ action and the action should reach its logical end. He said the government has nothing to do with the NAB raid as if the government was behind it, the action would have been taken with a large police contingent. He said NAB officials were maltreated by PML-N supporters, their clothes were torn and life threats were given to them.

He said for the Punjab government, it wasn’t difficult to arrest Hamza, but the government never opted for any political victimization unlike the previous government which used the police against innocent people at Model Town. He said the Sharifs and Asif Ali Zardari would have to answer questions regarding their wealth.