- Sources say Dar lost Nawaz Sharif’s trust after trying to cut covert deal during Panama Papers investigation
- Sartaj Aziz, Ahsan Iqbal, Pervaiz Malik and Miftah Ismail in the run for top slot at Finance Ministry
ISLAMABAD: Once considered the most powerful minister in ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s cabinet, Federal Minister for Finance Senator Ishaq Dar is likely to lose the coveted position after having lost the confidence of the former premier, Pakistan Today has learnt reliably.
The development comes as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) issued orders on Wedneday to all concerned departments and banks to freeze the finance minister’s accounts and property after an accountability court issued bailable arrest warrants for Dar when he failed to show up at the hearing of a corruption reference against him earlier in the day.
Informed sources told Pakistan Today that Dar, who virtually acted as the deputy prime minister and headed over 45 government committees, had lost Sharif’s trust during the Panama Papers investigation when the former premier was informed that his finance minister was looking to strike a deal with the investigators, as he had done in 2000 in the Hudaibiya Paper Mills case.
“Nawaz Sharif trusted Ishaq Dar completely which is why summaries sent by the finance minister to the Prime Minister’s Office were cleared instantly. Dar was also entrusted with supervision of the legal team defending the Sharif family in the Panamagate case and for bridging differences with the military establishment. However, Sharif started doubting Dar’s loyalty towards him when he was informed that the latter had covertly tried to strike a deal for himself with the probe authorities,” said the sources.
Dar is a close relative of Sharif and was among the select few who had direct access to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Soon after Shahid Khaqan Abbasi became prime minister, Dar saw his influence over the government erode rapidly as the new premier “cut him to size”, ostensibly on the orders of the top leadership, the sources claimed.
Abbasi first removed Dar from chairmanship of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the cabinet, and a few days later removed him from the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCOP) as well.
The finance minister’s removal from the CCOP raised many an eyebrow because Dar had played a key role in finalising the sale price of public-sector entities. He had remained an integral part of the CCOP since the introduction of the PML-N’s privatisation policy in the early 1990s.
Another source privy to the developments said that Ishaq Dar had also drawn ire of the military leadership when he flatly refused a request made by them during a national security committee meeting for allocation of funds for the purchase of crucial military hardware.
“The military leadership said the money was necessary to help meet the increasing needs of the armed forces but Senator Dar told them that the Finance Ministry did not have sufficient funds. This assertion did not go down well with the military leadership who argued that the government had been claiming that Pakistan’s economy was improving and the country would soon become an ‘Asian Tiger,’” the source claimed.
Dar reportedly blamed the Panama Papers case for Pakistan’s falling economy. In response, the military leadership said that prudent policies and their continuity form the basis for a strong economy.
“The military officers also commented on the low tax-to-GDP ratio and inefficient revenue collection system implemented by Dar which had failed to meet even 10 percent of the revenue target,” the source said.
It was further claimed that the finance minister had allegedly foiled several efforts of the Sharifs to improve the economy.
“Nawaz Sharif wanted to appoint prominent banker and former minister Shaukat Tareen as an adviser on financial affairs but Dar opposed the idea tooth and nail, telling the premier that he would step down from the Finance Ministry in case Tareen was brought in,” said the source. He added that the Sharifs also suspected Dar of trying to drive a wedge between the two brothers.
POSSIBLE REPLACEMENTS:
PML-N insiders say that Sartaj Aziz is being tipped as the most probable replacement for Dar but another name being seriously considered for the most important ministry after the PM’s Office, is of Federal Minister for Interior Ahsan Iqbal, who has been in charge of the Planning Ministry and has experience in executing development projects.
“Since it’s election year, Nawaz Sharif would want a trusted aide to head the Finance Ministry. Although the names of MNA Pervaiz Malik and Privatisation Commission Chairman Miftah Ismail are also being considered, it is likely that the coveted position would either go to Sartaj Aziz or Ahsan Iqbal,” said the sources, adding that a final decision in this regard would be taken after the return of Prime Minister Abbasi from the US.
NAB FREEZES DAR’S ACCOUNTS:
To add to the finance minister’s woes, the anti-graft watchdog’s Lahore office ordered all concerned departments and banks to freeze Dar’s accounts as well as any moveable or immovable assets that he owns in Pakistan.
According to a notification, Dar, “or any of his relatives and associates, or any other person on his behalf shall not transfer any property owned by [Dar] or in his possession”.
Violation of the notified instructions carries penalties of up to three years in prison and a fine “not exceeding the value of the property”, the notification says.
Sources in NAB told Pakistan Today’s Raja Faisal that a team from its Lahore office raided Dar’s residence in Islamabad’s Ministers Enclave on Wednesday evening and interrogated his domestic servants.
However, NAB denied these reports, saying they had only gone to the minister’s house to deliver the court’s notice.
The officials had the employees sign a receiving of the arrest orders and compliance summons, and then searched the house to make sure Dar was not present there, sources said.
BAILABLE ARREST WARRANTS FOR DAR:
On Wednesday, a NAB official submitted a report regarding the execution of summons and requested the accountability court to issue a warrant to ensure Dar’s presence at the next hearing.
Dar’s staff officer Fazal Dad submitted that the court’s summons had been received and the finance minister was aware of the hearing date but he was in London on a private visit.
“His seat was confirmed and he intended to return [in time], but he couldn’t,” the official said.
The judge noted that the summons had been received by the minister’s driver and his protocol officer was also aware of it. The court also noted that the previous summons returned with proper execution and the driver’s statement was annexed with it.
NAB is yet to determine the role of the president of the National Bank of Pakistan and others in “aiding and abetting” the finance minister.
In the reference, NAB alleged that Dar “has acquired assets and pecuniary interests and resources in his own name and the names of his dependants of an…amount of Rs831.678 million”. The reference states that these assets are disproportionate to his known sources of income.
The accountability court will resume proceedings in the reference against Dar on September 25, while the reference against the Sharif family would be taken up on September 26.
The Supreme Court (SC), in its Panama Papers case verdict, had ordered NAB to investigate the accused named in the report filed by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT).
The JIT had pointed out an exorbitant increase in Dar’s assets from 2008 to 2009. NAB authorities summoned the minister but he did not appear for investigation, arguing that NAB could not investigate him as he had filed a review petition in the apex court.
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has reportedly submitted Dar’s tax return data from the last 20 years to NAB. The SECP has also handed over the records of seven companies owned by the minister and his family members to the anti-corruption watchdog.
PMLN CHOR DAKOO PARTY!
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