The Supreme Court seems to be taking steady action where necessary and is actively involved in the revaluation of government institutions; operating specifically to ensure that no corruption or ill practices are used to achieve any means. Last month, four Director Generals (DGs) of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) faced de-notification as a result of occupying lucrative positions even after retirement.
This is just one of the cases that was highlighted in the media and brought to the forefront, the fact that every organ of the state is full of people who abuse the authority that they have and push the system back further lies ignored. A scrutiny committee was formed on the orders of the Supreme Court (SC) after the de-notification of the DGs, because several members have been appointed despite being illegible for the job. Finding the people responsible for these appointments in the interest of transparency and accountability should be made a priority.
Establishment Secretary Tahir Shahbaz has presented a list of over 100 senior officials of NAB, who lack the required experience in dealing with white collar crimes and their investigation. The irony is that several have been promoted to the status of DGs as personal favours and have decided the fate of hundreds of corruption cases. If that are the prevailing conditions, how can one expect that they are fulfilling their roles effectively? Can someone who is hired illegally – and is not capable of investigating corruption cases – be in a position to point out flaws elsewhere in the system?
The reason why the Panamagate case went to the apex court is because institutions like NAB and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) failed to do their job. A possible reason for why Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is in a position to celebrate the Panamagate verdict is because it realises that these institutions will never be able to find sufficient evidence implicating the Sharif family. When NAB does not have officers qualified enough to investigate the white-collar crimes, how do we expect a just result? These officers are likely to be removed from their posts, and that too as a result of the action of the apex court. When will institutions themselves realise the responsibility that they have and the impact of their actions on the functioning of the system?