–Goveronica documents stated Nawaz as Capital FZE board chairman, Wajid Zia tells court
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday avoided questions regarding Prime Minister Imran Khan’s NRO statement, saying he did not listen to the PM’s address.
Nawaz appeared before the accountability court in Islamabad for the hearing of the National Accountability Bureau’s references against him when he was bombarded with questions by journalists regarding the PM’s address.
When asked about Saudi Arabia’s financial deal and PM Imran’s address he said, “I seldom watch TV and did not listen to his [Imran’s] address.”
CAPITAL FZE:
Earlier, Joint Investigation Team (JIT) head Wajid Zia informed the accountability court that the original copies of source documents pertaining to Capital FZE were presented to the court in the Flagship Investment case.
“The two documents received from Goveronica Authority had mentioned Nawaz Sharif as the company’s board chairman, while another one had stated the former prime minister as its marketing manager,” he said.
Zia said that accused Hassan Nawaz had told the JIT that he himself arranged money for the establishment of Capital FZE.
“The same money was given to Quint Paddington later,” he said while quoting Hassan Nawaz during the cross-examining before Accountability Court Judge Arshad Malik, who is hearing corruption references against the former premier and his sons.
Nawaz also appeared before the court along with his legal team.
During the course of proceedings, defence counsel Khawaja Haris continued Zia’s cross-examination on the fourth consecutive day.
He said that Hassan Nawaz also told the JIT that the financial statement of Capital FZE was prepared by his accountant. The team did not ask about the financial statement of Quint Paddington during questioning, the JIT head said.
He said the JIT did not involve any accountant of Hassan Nawaz into the investigation process nor did it mention Hassan as the owner of Capital FZE in its report. “The [Joint Investigation] Team it also did not find any documents that showed Nawaz Sharif as an owner or shareholder of the company,” he added.
The JIT head admitted that no witness had given the statement that former prime minister was the owner of the company, adding, however, the team had approached Jufra Authority in Dubai to know what connection the accused had with Capital FZE.
He said that the JIT had written in its report that Hassan Nawaz had established Capital FZE and Nawaz Sharif had been receiving salary form it. According to Jufra Authority, the former prime minister was associated with the company as board chairman, he said.
Zia also rejected the allegations of forgery and tampering levelled by the defence lawyer.
Later, the court adjourned the hearing of the case till Friday (today).