Traders are backbone of country's prosperity: NAB chief

The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Justice (Retd) Javed Iqbal has said that the business community is the backbone of the country's development and prosperity.

According to details, Javed Iqbal chaired a meeting of the Executive Board. He asserted that bringing the mega-corruption cases to their logical end is NAB's top priority as the overall conviction rate for corruption cases has been recorded at 70%.

An approval was given in the meeting to close inquiries against Former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar, former MNA Mian Imtiaz and MNA Chaudhry Muhammad

Munir.

Addressing the meeting, Chairman NAB said that the national institution believes in reaching the logical conclusion while staying within the purview of the law. "In the last 23 months, 610 corruption references were filed in the accountability courts while Rs71 billion was recovered from corrupt elements and deposited in the national exchequer", he added.

Javed Iqbal expressed, "The World Economic Forum's report has appreciated NAB's awareness and policy of prevention," while urging the general public to point out illegal housing societies.

According to a statement issued after the meeting, the anti-graft watchdog approved closure of the inquiry against former chairman National Insurance Company Limited Ayaz Khan Niazi (NICL) Ayaz Khan Niazi. The NAB approved five other corruption inquiries. The meeting also approved the initiation of an inquiry against former District Nazim Bhakkar.

Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan directed senior bureaucrats to 'deliver' and take the 'risk' of timely decisions without fearing the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

While chairing a meeting of federal secretaries and chief secretaries of the provinces, Mr Khan expressed dissatisfaction over their performance, telling them that more than "one year has passed since we came into power, but we could not deliver what the people had been expecting".

The meeting took place almost a week after the secretaries met Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa to express their reservations over NAB actions.

Previously, a delegation of business tycoons in a meeting with the COAS had lodged complaints against the NAB.

Adviser to the Prime Minister on Establishment Arbab Shahzad said the secretaries shared their grievances with the prime minister against what they called ' harassment' and ' threatening' attitude of the NAB due to which the government officials were reluctant to sign official files.