NAB issue headed for Supreme Court of Pakistan

 

The issue of Admiral (retd) Fasih Bokhari’s appointment as Chief of the National Accountability Bureau is set to end up in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the main opposition party in the National Assembly, confirmed that they will file a complaint in the apex court regarding the matter.

The PML-N had reservations on the appointment of Fasih Bokhari and had raised objections at not being consulted in the matter to President Asif Ali Zardari.

“Mr President, if the objective of the entire exercise is to select a nominee with impeccable reputation, integrity and credibility and unquestionable impartiality, there is no reason whatsoever for hesitation on the part of the government to engage with the opposition in a thorough, concrete and meaningful consultation,” Chaudhry Nisar, the leader of opposition in the National Assembly, had said in his letter sent to the president on Oct 13.

The Pakistan People’s Party led federal government however ignored the reservations of its main political rival in the country and went ahead with the appointment, a notification for which was issued by the Law Ministry on Sunday, bearing the signature of the President.

Many political analysts in the country, and lawmakers of the PML-N, had earlier suggested that the matter could be taken to court as the appointment was contrary to an earlier judgement, issued in the case of Syed Deedar Hussein Shah. Deedar Hussein was appointed Chief of NAB by the President earlier this year, but his appointment was also challenged in the Supreme Court by PML-N.

The court, in its judgement on that case, annulled the appointment of Deedar Hussein and ruled that any appointment for the office of Chief NAB shall be made after meaningful consultation with the leader of opposition in the National Assembly.

The PML-N therefore comprehends that it has a strong case against the government as it was once again left in the dark about the appointment of Bokhari.

Fasih Bokhari is a former Chief of the Pakistan Navy and his name is not as politically maligned as his predecessor, Deedar Hussein. The Admiral met with the Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani prior to the notification being issued for his appointment. He also held talks with senior leadership of the PML-N, but apparently was not able to dispel their reservations regarding his appointment.

Posted by Ali Ahmed on Oct 18 2011. Filed under Latest News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry