Post Panama
A number of legal issues need to be resolved to satisfy those who raise questions about the fantastic growth of the Sharif family’s wealth abroad. The issues centre around the origins of the funds employed to set up two steel mills in Saudi Arabia, one avowedly sold to set up business in London while the other still working successfully in Jeddah. The questions had not arisen if Hussain Nawaz had not adamantly refused to share details when interviewed by media. There is also a need to reconcile the incongruities between the Panama Papers and the statements by Hussain Nawaz about his sister being “beneficial owner’ or trustee. This explains the reason behind the critics’ insistence on a forensic investigation by international auditing firms. Many think the moral question raised by the Papers is even more important. As the Leader of the Opposition put it, the question is how the family of a prime minister whose job was to bring investment to the country had set up a business empire abroad.
What made the government’s case look weak is the recourse to jibes and intemperate remarks against Imran Khan by a federal minister on the floor of the National Assembly on Thursday. Similarly unguarded remarks by another minister on Friday added further to the bitterness. Both PPP and PTI consequently warned the government to either set up a special commission under the CJ P in consultation with the opposition or be prepared for public protests.
The opposition rejected the government’s offer of a judicial commission made in the National Assembly. The experience of the judicial commissions formed in the past corroborates the opposition’s scepticism. Agitation of any type would however be the last thing the country can afford. The opposition has to realize that any attempt to take to the streets can prove fatal to the system. There is a need for the government and the opposition to sit together to evolve a consensus on the kind of body that can conduct the probe.