ISLAMABAD: The government on Monday failed to explain why it did not want to retain certain clauses of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Law 1999 that pertain to mutual assistance and international cooperation in dealing with corruption in the proposed National Accountability Bill 2010.
The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs met Begum Nasim Akhtar Chaudhry in the chair to discuss the Accountability Bill 2010, which will replace the NAB law. PML-N members, including Zahid Hamid, Anusha Rehman and Saira Afzal Tarar were of the view that the clauses should be retained in the new bill to keep a check on overseas corruption cases, as is obligatory under the International Conventions against corruption.
However, representatives of the Law Ministry said the government wanted to omit the clauses. On insistence of the PML-N members, the committee chairman asked Law Ministry Senior Draftsman Malik Hakim to explain why and on what grounds did the government want to remove the clauses.
The official said he had presented the government’s point of view on the issue and would be passing a political statement if commented on the issue. Hakim said the minister of state for law alone was the appropriate person to comment on the issue. Earlier, PML-N members said if the government repealed certain clauses of the new bill, it would be violating the international conventions on corruption.
However, the committee decided that the Accountability Bill would be applicable to all past and present holders of public office.
Committee member Abdul Ghafoor Chaudhry differed with the decision and announced to submit a note of dissent on the decision.
