Govt rejects Opp’s ‘Get Nawaz’ mission

The federal government on Wednesday trashed the Terms of Reference (TORs) presented by the opposition to probe the Panama Papers revelations with Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan saying the opposition parties only want to get rid of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and do not care about the legal proceedings.

“Their slogans of anti-corruption are only for show. These are aimed at diverting the public’s attention,” Nisar said while addressing a press conference on Wednesday.

However, the interior minister, flanked by Law Minister Zahid Hamid Khan, told the press conference that the government would continue to hold talks with the opposition for reaching consensus on the TORs.

Prior to the interaction with the media, a high-level meeting held at the Prime Minister’s House had a thorough discussion over the opposition’s demands.

Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said during the presser that it was a matter of ‘grave concern’ that a single person was being targeted through media, rallies and press conferences and the probe into the Panama Papers revelations was being politicised.

He said Pakistan is a democratic country where an independent judiciary is in place.

“There are people who only put their faith in the Supreme Court if the judgments are given in their favour,” he said.

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS, ACCORDING TO NISAR:

The interior minister’s press conference revolved around the explanation of events that transpired since the day the Panama Papers’ revelations took the world by storm.

Nisar said that the prime minister had sincerely offered a probe into allegations relating to Panama Leaks, and asked what more the opposition parties need from Prime Minister Nawaz who has announced that he will go home if proven guilty.

The minister said that many cabinet ministers actually believed that since there was no mention of the PM’s name in the Panama Papers, there was no need for him to make a clarification through an address to the nation.

“The ministers thought it would blow up the Panama Leaks allegations. However, the PM still addressed the nation and announced a judicial commission. Later, judges with impeccable record were contacted for the probe. But the judges turned down the offer due to warrantless criticism by the opposition,” the minister said.

“We accepted all demands made by opposition – from a probe by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to writing a letter to the chief justice of the apex court. We hoped that this would put an end to media trial of the prime minister and his family members. But later, the opposition once again deviated from their previous demands, unnecessarily politicising the matter.”

LOST IN TRANSLATION, OR IS IT?

The opposition, after realising that the current legal framework was tilted too heavily in favour of the government, came up with TORs designed to level the playing. Their headline demand included the enactment of a new law which allows for reversing the burden of proof on the defendant besides the provision of a more stringent investigative mechanism.

Seeing through the demands as a way to encircle the prime minister, the government side has instead chosen not to discuss the principle and keep repeating their mantra of ‘if proven guilty’.

“If you have a case, bring it forward and let us present our case too. Why is there a delay? What are your reservations?” the minister argued during the press conference, adding that progress would only be made in the formation of the commission once the government and the opposition agree on the TORs.

The interior minister alleged that the opposition had been backtracking on its demands of how the corruption allegations stemming from the Panama Leaks would be investigated.

He added that the government even offered the probe to be carried out by Federal Investigative Agency (FIA) and that Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was asked to name any official to head the committee.

“The government was in agreement to investigate the issue through a parliamentary committee, but opposition backed out of this demand. They later demanded to form a commission under the Chief Justice of Pakistan and we agreed on that too,” Nisar said.

PM CENTRED ACCOUNTABILITY WON’T DO:

Criticising the Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP), without naming it, for delaying the commission’s job, the interior minister said the party should not confuse people and let the truth come out.

“A group in the opposition is not serious in getting rid of corruption from the country. They would much rather target the prime minister, which is insulting. This is not democracy, this is stubbornness,” the minister said.

Offering dialogue to the opposition parties on the TORs, the minister said the opposition and the government should work jointly to expose the truth rather than confusing the nation.

ILLEGAL, UNETHICAL, UNACCEPTABLE TORS:

Law Minister Zahid Hamid said that the proposed amendments were mala fide and disappointing which had created a gulf between the government and the opposition.

“The TORs are based on mala fide intentions,” the law minister said, and added, “These are only targeted against the prime minister, which is illegal, unethical and unacceptable. The TORs of the opposition parties already suggest a conclusion in the preamble, which is against the rules of any probe.”

Hamid said that even the ICIJ had said Nawaz Sharif’s name was not mentioned in the Panama Papers but the opposition parties had given their verdict on the matter.

GOVT, PTI AGREE ON TALKS:

Late on Wednesday night, Railways Minister Khwaja Saad Rafique and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Khan Tareen agreed to hold talks to discuss the TORs for the commission.

Both leaders, at a TV show, debated the merits and demerits of the TORs framed by the government and the opposition, with Saad Rafique extending an invitation to the opposition to sit with the government and finalise the TORs.

On Tuesday, the opposition parties had agreed on a joint strategy for a judicial investigation of disclosures in the leaked Panama Papers investigation linking Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s children and several other Pakistanis to offshore companies.

The TORs agreed upon by the opposition, pressed the government to enact a special law – the “Panama Papers (Inquiry And Trial) Act, 2016” – to be passed to facilitate investigation into the assets, foreign and domestic, of the prime minister and all other Pakistanis named in the papers.

GOVT OFFERS TO PROBE HARASSMENT OF WOMEN AT PTI RALLIES:

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar also offered a joint probe into the harassment cases in recent PTI rallies in Islamabad and Lahore, deploring the PTI’s claims that PML-N activists were involved in molesting women at the rallies.

He questioned why such incidents occur ‘only in PTI gatherings’.

“Do you hear of this happening in PPP, PML-N, JUI-F or ANP rallies? It isn’t right to put blame on others instead of looking within your own ranks,” he said.

“The opposition, including the PTI, should form a committee. We will also form a committee and the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) will be taken on board to identify those involved in harassment incidents,” Nisar said, urging media outlets and police to share the footage and photographs of the people involved.

“NADRA will use the photos to identify the suspects while the statements of victims can also be taken.”

“The media and the opposition parties’ committee can decide if they are PTI workers, PML-N men or members of another political party,” the interior minister, said and added, “The perpetrators will be made to face exemplary punishment.”