LAHORE   -  The Deputy Chairman of the National Accountability Bu­reau (NAB) Soheil Nasir and the Director General NAB La­hore Amjad Majeed Olakh met with Deputy Speaker Malik Za­heer Iqbal Channar in the Pun­jab Assembly on Monday.

During the meeting, they provided a comprehensive briefing on the establishment and operations of the Account­ability Facilitation Cell (AFC). According to details, the Depu­ty Chairman of NAB, along with the DG NAB Lahore, briefed the Deputy Speaker on the new AFC, stating that the Account­ability Facilitation Cell would operate under a Grade 20 of­ficer directly supervised by the Provincial Assembly Speaker. Any complaints against Mem­bers of the Provincial Assem­bly (MPAs) registered with NAB would be referred to the Accountability Cell for prelimi­nary scrutiny. Following initial investigations, the Account­ability Cell will forward the complaint through the Speaker of the Provincial Assembly to NAB for further action.

The Deputy Chairman of NAB outlined that the purpose of establishing the Account­ability Cell is to enhance mutu­al coordination and build trust between the Assembly and the national institution regarding complaints against Provincial Assembly members. Deputy Chairman NAB Soheil Nasir further stated that NAB will no longer act on anonymous, pseudonymous, or fraudulent complaints against respected Provincial Assembly members. Instead, action will be taken against the complainant if the complaint is found to be false or baseless. He also mentioned that if NAB officers require in­vestigations against any MPA, NAB teams will visit the As­sembly to conduct scrutiny or inquiry-level investigations. Progress on complaints and cases against members will de­pend on coordination between the Regional DG NAB and the Provincial Assembly Speaker.

NAB Chairman Lt. Gen. (R) Nazir Ahmad has issued instructions to ensure that complaints against esteemed members are handled with respect for their dignity and personal honor. During the initial stages of investigation, the identities of both the com­plainants and the MPAs will be kept confidential. According to the Chairman’s vision, efforts are being made to promote transparency and a culture of accountability within the bu­reaucracy, business commu­nity, and esteemed Parliament.

On this occasion, Deputy Chairman NAB Soheil Nasir presented a draft of the Ac­countability Facilitation Cell, and DG NAB Lahore presented a shield to the Deputy Speaker. In return, the Deputy Speaker awarded honorary shields to the Deputy Chairman NAB and DG NAB Lahore, assur­ing full cooperation from the Speaker’s office in the future. He also expressed commit­ment to enhancing mutual en­gagement between the Punjab Assembly and NAB. The public initiatives of NAB Lahore un­der the supervision of DG NAB Lahore Amjad Majeed Olakh were warmly appreciated.