The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led federal government on Friday engaged in war of words yet again over the anti-corruption drive launched by the government.
PML-N spokesperson Marriyum Aurangzeb earlier in the day claimed that the government had ‘lied’ in its written response to a set of questions submitted to the parliament. “When they were asked what amount of money was recovered through the Asset Recovery Unit and what expenses were incurred in the exercise, Ali Mohammad said in response: Nawaz Sharif and Shehbaz Sharif should be asked regarding the amount of corruption they have done. If Shehbaz Sharif has engaged in corruption, the proof must be submitted to the court and the same should have been mentioned in the written response submitted in parliament,” she said.
She said that instead, what has been submitted in writing shows that no recoveries were made and millions were spent on the unit. “We demand an apology for having called us robbers and thieves when in the government’s response there isn’t even a single rupee’s worth of recovery,” said the PML-N leader. “They claim that PTV and Radio Pakistan have earned profits. The response shows that the expenditures outweigh the income. The response submitted by them is a lie […] they lied in parliament,” she said.
The PML-N leader said that when the government is asked why inflation has tripled and growth halved, they present ‘the same old tired argument’ of corruption by Nawaz and Shehbaz. “The Supreme Court has already ruled that Shehbaz Sharif prevented corruption in Punjab and played the role of a good guy,” she said, referring to the Supreme Court’s observations during a hearing in the Ashiyana-i-Iqbal Housing Scheme case. In further criticism, Aurangzeb said, “In the largest province of the country today, there is a complete breakdown of governance and administration. There is no justification for them (PTI) to rule,” she said.
PML-N leader Khurram Dastagir also censured the government for the dire situation that had arisen owing to the closure of PIC and called for the arrest of those involved in the attack on PIC. “This kind of lawlessness, extremism, and torture has emanated from D-Chowk,” he said, in reference to the 2014 sit-in by the PTI.
He said that despite having a government in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, not a single cardiac institute had been established by the PTI where the patients could have been shifted. “That’s because the accountability commission in KP is all locked up for a few years now.” Datagir said that he had inquired from the government what role Pakistan had played in the recovery by Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) of ‘a few million pounds belonging to a Pakistani’. “I also asked them how much had been recovered and upon the repatriation of the funds to Pakistan, where they will be used.” He said the government did not have an answer to the queries. “But we will keep asking these questions on behalf of the people.”
Later in the day, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Accountability Barrister Shahzad Akbar hit back at Maryam Aurangzeb, saying she should seek answers of the question asked by him from her leader Shehbaz Sharif instead of misleading the public with her concocted statements regarding the Assets Recovery Unit (ARU). Maryam Aurangzeb, he said, had been provided full information regarding her queries on the ARU’s achievements, its administrative expenditure, details of the tours made by the ARU officials, including Special Assistant to the PM on Accountability, who heads the unit, and expenses incurred on them, and the authority under which the same were conducted, besides any proposal to carry out performance-based audit of such unit. Shahzad Akbar said he had also raised 18 questions for her leader Shehbaz Sharif, which are still unattended. “Maryam Aurangzeb should better ask her leader to give answer of those questions instead of making attempts for a way-out,” he said. Responding to allegations leveled in a media talk, Shahzad Akbar said Khurram Dastagir had criticized the Anti-Corruption Department of Punjab as it had retrieved its land worth Rs129 billion from his illegal possession.
