Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday wrote a letter to Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah, proposing names of Justice (r) Rehmat Hussain Jaffery and former federal secretary Khawaja Zaheer Ahmed for appointment as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman.
However, sources close to Shah said he would consult with the PPP top leadership. He would also take into confidence the leadership of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and others over the issue in a bid to adopt a unanimous strategy over the subject matter, the sources added.
The nomination of Justice (r) Rehmat Hussain Jaffery may have shocked many, as Nawaz does not carry good memories about him.
Justice Jaffery shot to prominence in year 2000 when he handed down life sentence to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif in the plane hijacking case. Although the SHC upheld the sentence, the Supreme Court quashed the conviction on July 18, 2009.
Later, Justice Jaffery was appointed as an additional judge of the Supreme Court in year 2009. He retired on November 20, 2010.
Khwaja Zaheer is a retired bureaucrat considered to be very close to the Sharif family. His name had also been proposed by Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif for appointment as caretaker chief minister Punjab.
The Supreme Court had expressed resentment over the vacant seat of NAB chairman and asked the authorities concerned to fill the slot at the earliest.
Under the 18th Constitutional Amendment, the opposition leader may accept any of the two names proposed by the prime minister or he may reject these by raising valid objections against each of the nominees with strong arguments.
He may also suggest more names for the post. According to the 18th Amendment, the chairman of NAB cannot be appointed without the consent of the opposition leader in the National Assembly.
Earlier, a judicial verdict stating that the former PM had not duly consulted then National Assembly opposition leader had resulted in the ouster of former NAB chairman Admiral (r) Fasih Bokhari.
It might be a difficult time for both PML N and PPP when they are going to pick a NAB Chairman I hope they do not pick up old cogger or a man over the working age as they did in selection of EC Voting were rigged and RO failed to do their jobs hence Imran Khan was done. Not this time please treat this selection an important and do better than your previous selection People of Pakistan would like to see someone young and honest no matter if he is not a Judge. Once bitten twice shy. No more mistakes made intentionally and then saying sorry.
Yes this is a serious action the last chairman didn't performed well and at the end said sorry, this time we don't want to this thing happen again pick up a well recognized and eligible name for this post as this is a major department of Pakistan.
The NAB Chief has to be independent, in his early fifties and not a favorite of Nawaz Sharif or even remotely connected with any political party. Since cash is what NAB primarily follows it has to be someone with a good knowledge of forensic accounting.
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