Pakistan’s graft problem? - Comment

ISLAMABAD: Almost two years after his maiden victory secured to give Pakistan a new direction, Prime Minister Imran Khan remains well behind delivering on some of his key promises.

One such promise extended from his high pedestal across the road from Parliament during Mr Khan’s opposition days, repeatedly assured Pakistan’s rank and file of delivering a ‘corruption-free’ country. Those were the ‘D-Chowk’ days celebrated night after night amid the boom of music and dance, as followers of a previously untested leader anxiously looked towards a newly emerging dawn. But, today, that image appears only embedded in an area swiftly gone by.

With questions increasingly raised on the pursuit of corruption, fresh controversies over the tactics used by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to daily life across the country, have clearly erupted. Eventually it’s clear that Pakistan’s well-known graft problem is waiting to be tackled while the country’s grass roots are far from breathing a long awaited sigh of relief.

The matter of Pakistan’s controversial pursuit of corruption has once swiftly shot to prominence this week with reports of the well respected former minister Sartaj Aziz being targeted in an inquiry. It’s a baffling case given Mr Aziz’s well-known credentials as a seasoned technocrat-turned-politician with an unblemished record.

Visitors to his former office in Lahore while Mr Aziz presided over the privately owned Beaconhouse university, were regularly entertained with photos from his younger days standing besides the father of the nation Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. Mr Aziz’ patriotism extended beyond his days as a student activist for the Pakistan Muslim League led by Mr Jinnah to his stint in government.

Eventually, Mr Aziz’ worldly assets were made possible by a tenure as an international civil servant before he returned to serve Pakistan. In over three decades since his return and subsequent service as finance minister and foreign minister, the matter of financial impropriety or personal gain has never erupted before.

The case must also raise eyebrows as Mr Aziz’ only crime seems to be one – that he has loyally remained within the fold of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz (PML-N). The case of Mr Aziz follows the matter of Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, fondly known as MSR, the Editor-in-Chief of the Jang/Geo media group. He has remained incarcerated for almost four months on a still to be proven corruption charge, and refused permission even to visit two of his dying siblings before they passed away.

Beyond such individual cases, some of Pakistan’s most respected entrepreneurs have clearly adopted a wait and see approach amidst mounting confusion over the country’s future political and economic direction. Though Pakistan’s outlook has clearly suffered with the fallout from the coronavirus, there wasn’t much to cherish even before the country became engulfed in this global pandemic.

In a clear departure from Pakistan’s practically baby steps to reverse the space for money laundering, Prime Minister Khan’s restoration of a ‘no questions asked’ policy for the construction sector has raised questions over his commitment to ending graft. Under the ‘no questions asked’ framework, entrepreneurs in construction have been given till end of the year to ‘whiten’ or ‘legitimise’ their wealth without disclosing their source of funds. The country’s past record for allegedly giving space to money laundering, played heavily in Pakistan being forced on the ‘grey list’ by the Paris based Financial Action Task Force (FATF)-the global watchdog on money laundering. A failure to avoid the ultimate 'black list' will only yield horrific consequences for an economy, which is already in tatters.

Meanwhile, the government’s push to nudge banks across Pakistan to finance residential properties built in future, has raised troubling questions over the country's financial health. With gaps in Pakistan’s foreclosure laws, banks are set to struggle in handing out vast amounts in new loans without clear assurance of recoveries. This will especially be troublesome, as a large segment of prospective new buyers will not necessarily have either an established or a reliable credit history.

Eventually, the risk to financial institutions is set to grow unless the government moves rapidly to enact new laws backed by tough procedures in support of ensuring foreclosures. In a telling reminder, despite widespread publicity given to new avenues for prosecution on bounced checks, the reality on the ground remains mixed. Notwithstanding provisions for arrest of individuals handing out bogus checks, many habitual offenders continue to violate the law with impunity.

Ultimately, a conclusive change for pushing Pakistan towards a corruption-free environment, requires the prime minister to build a national consensus involving players from political parties to a wide variety of interest groups and key institutions. But, with a well-documented combative approach in running the government, Prime Minister Imran Khan has done more to sow the seeds of discord than national unity.

For ordinary Pakistanis going about in their daily lives, the writing on the wall is abundantly clear – that they are set to suffer in a graft-ridden country unless a ruling structure, present or future, can lead the country towards meaningful and landmark reforms.