Now it’s NAB’s turn to be held accountable: Mandviwalla

ISLAMABAD: Senate Deputy Chairman Saleem Mandviwalla has said he intends to get the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) “blacklisted”—not just in Pakistan—but around the world, as he announced that senators would launch a probe into the assets and qualifications of investigators as well as the alleged custodial deaths of people in the anti-graft bureau’s detention.

“Now the senators will hold NAB accountable. We will approach every foreign ambassador in Pakistan and will expose NAB’s atrocities,” Mandviwalla said in a fiery news conference on Sunday.

He was joined by members of civil society, during which he alleged many people had died in NAB’s custody, “which should be investigated”, according to Geo News. “Numerous people have lost their lives in their custody. I have a human rights activist with me today who will tell you how rights have been violated by the accountability watchdog,” he said.

Mandviwalla said NAB’s “undue pressure tactics” were damaging the institution’s credibility. “Now if NAB sends a notice to someone, people laugh at their decisions. Their actions have no value now, neither in the bureaucracy and judiciary, nor in the civil society or among business community members,” he added.

The Senate Deputy Chairman alleged that the NAB had committed many atrocities in the past, using intimidation tactics and making “fake” arrests. “This is not a battle between Saleem Mandviwalla and NAB; this is a battle between NAB and the Senate of Pakistan. Also, every senator in this country—whether he is from the opposition or from the government—agree that NAB should be exposed.”

Mandviwalla added that he, along with other senators, will make sure to investigate the appointment of NAB’s Director-General and an investigation officer, stating that it would be the first time when a probe would be launched against the NAB.

“We will check the degrees of NAB’s employees. It will be the first time when NAB will be accountable and [how these employees] are [leading a lifestyle] beyond their means,” he said. Mandviwalla stressed that no one would be able to stop him from conducting an investigation.

“It is high time we hold such institutions accountable for their deeds and expose them without getting intimidated by them,” Mandiwalla added. He also insisted that the Senate’s move against NAB was not for a specific individual but against all the alleged injustices that the institution has committed.

“We will not conduct the investigation inside a closed room like them. The trial will be conducted in front of the media and facts will be presented in front of everyone,” he said.

“I will again approach Prime Minister Imran Khan and the opposition to get them on board so that we can pass legislation. As you know that an ordinance was passed by the government to curtail NAB’s powers and limit it to only corruption, the ordinance lapsed as there was no consensus between the opposition and the government in this regard,” he said.