Cabinet authorises MoU between NAB and FBI

ISLAMABAD: The federal cabinet Tuesday authorised the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) despite opposition from Human Rights Minister Dr Shireen Mazari.

Shireen Mazari believes that the NAB-FBI agreement will open another political Pandora’s box and a new debate will kick start. She believes that NAB and FBI are two different institutions and their MoU would be illogical. She said NAB is an anti-corruption institution, while the FBI deals with internal security and law and order.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has also summoned an important meeting today (Wednesday) to take action against unregistered non-governmental organisations (NGOs) promoting foreign agenda.

According to local media reports quoting sources, the decision was taken during the cabinet meeting on Tuesday, where it was agreed to take decisive action against NGOs promoting foreign agenda.

Imran Khan was quoted as saying during the meeting that he had also received reports against the NGOs being run on foreign funding. The federal ministers said that it was time for decisive action and stern measures should be adopted against such organisations.

According to reports, the cabinet was informed that there were several NGOs working in Pakistan that are operating without registration and are receiving foreign funding. “Such NGOs are promoting their agenda,” they said.

The prime minister decided to summon a meeting to review the matter, which would be attended by ministers from economic affairs, foreign affairs, information and broadcasting, national security adviser, and others.

Imran Khan has also summoned detailed information on the NGOs including their source of income and registration. The sources said that recently the Interior Ministry received a complaint against an NGO.

The cabinet during its meeting took strict notice of anti-military statements by the opposition leaders and clarified that the talk against national institutions was shameful and making the enemy happy, as these were flashed on the Indian media.

The cabinet meeting was presided over by Prime Minister Imran Khan. Briefing media persons about the cabinet decisions and replying to questions from journalists, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz said the PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz and other PDM leaders were pushing anti-Pakistan agenda similar to India, the arch-enemy of Pakistan.

Dr Faisal Sultan, Special Assistant for Health, briefed the cabinet on the current situation of coronavirus. The cabinet was told that passengers from the UK were being monitored and a final decision on the corona vaccine would be taken soon.

The cabinet was informed that during the second wave of corona pandemic, Pakistan has become self-sufficient in terms of medical equipment, including ventilators, masks and other equipment being manufactured and used domestically. The cabinet approved the deployment of Frontier Constabulary in Gilgit-Baltistan for a period of three years.

At the beginning of the meeting, the prime minister said that insha'Allah the government will use all the resources to eradicate hunger and poverty on the basis of database using the Ehsaas program for the rest of the term. The prime minister wanted that none slept hungry in the country. He said the opposition was falling apart. He said the government would fulfil its promises before the completion of its tenure, adding that 2021 will be the year of development, prosperity and economic stability.

Shibli said that the issue of rhetoric against the institutions by Mufti Kifayatullah was discussed in the federal cabinet. He said that the narrative of DisinfoLab, in which Indian disinformation camp was unearthed by the European Union, the people of PDM were moving it forward, and it was a well-organised campaign in which their main objective was to discredit the state of Pakistan and spread chaos in the country.

The minister said that the government has taken serious note of this campaign. “Who is connected with Hussain Haqqani? All reports are being received. Kifayatullah's words are shameful. The enemy is being appeased with this kind of talk. What is happening here is going on as breaking news in the Indian media. The PDM is becoming tool of our eternal enemy, India, knowingly or unknowingly,” the minister charged.

Shibli said a movement has started within the parties grouped in the PDM and everyone was watching the uprising in the JUI. He said the PDM was history after the decision of the PPP's CEC on resignations. He noted that Imran Khan's position was that had Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari not got NRO, the situation would have been very different today. He said that even after the 18th Amendment, the spirit of the federation must be maintained “It does not mean that the provinces have now become independent states. They are supposed to be cooperating in view of their resources,” he said.

Replying to a question, Shibli Faraz said that it was clearly written in the Constitution that if national institutions, judiciary and Pakistan Army were brought into disrepute then it would be a violation of the Constitution.

The minister the recent statements by Maulana Sherani testify that Maulana Fazlur Rehman was selected to form his own group in the main party of JUI for his own political objectives: He revolted from the party by deviating from the basic ideology and thinking and using politics for personal gain.

The minister said an important issue was discussed in detail in the cabinet regarding Mufti Kifayatullah. He said that cases would be framed in accordance with the law.

About the PTI government’s promise of provision of 10 million jobs and 5 million houses, the minister said that at the end of the government tenure, these promises would be fulfilled, God willing. Referring to the opposition, he said that one should be grateful to Allah Almighty that Pakistan did not suffer much during the first wave of the coronavirus, while other countries like US, Europe and India massively suffered, and millions were pushed below the poverty line. He said the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan successfully handled the pandemic during its first phase. The minister said the PDM must not even think about taking resignation from the government as it is experiencing its own collapse.

During the cabinet meeting, the Petroleum Division briefed the cabinet on the availability of gas in the country. The Ministry of Interior and the CDA briefed the cabinet on the time required for removal of encroachments on Margalla Road, Islamabad. The cabinet was informed that the Ministry of Defence has formally applied to the CDA for approval of the building plan. The protective wall on Margalla Road will be moved within its approved limits within a period of six months. Wetland will be constructed in three months for cleaning the drain passing through the same sector. In addition, underpasses will be constructed in these sectors in partnership with Pakistan Navy, Pakistan Air Force and CDA to reduce traffic congestion in these sectors. The Cabinet was assured that no vegetation inside Islamabad would be eliminated or allocated for construction.

The cabinet allowed CDA to set up 120 acres of land for setting up Special Technology Zone in Islamabad. The forum approved the appointment of Dr Muhammad Saeed Khan Jadoon as Director General, Hydrocarbon Development Institute of Pakistan.

The cabinet also approved the release of Rs219.30 million to the Ministry of Health which will be used to activate the recently completed Isolation Hospital and Infections Treatment Centre in Islamabad. It also approved appointment of 16 federal drug inspectors in Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan and allocation of their jurisdiction.

The meeting approved appointment of Javed Ghani as Chairman Federal Board of Revenue (FBR). The cabinet ratified the decisions taken at the meeting of the Privatization Committee held on December 24, 2020. The cabinet also ratified the decisions taken at the meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) held on December 24, 2020.