NAB Roles in Pakistan’s Anti-Corruption Efforts

NAB Roles in Pakistan

National Accountability Bureau (NAB). It is the anti-corruption agency in Pakistan with a legal framework that provides wide operational powers and independence. Its enabling law is the National Accountability Ordinance which extends to the whole of Pakistan and is applicable to all persons in the country. It overrides all other laws on corruption that otherwise control criminal prosecutions. It can seek information from any organization/department in connection with any investigation pending before it and has extraordinary powers to seize, freeze or transfer assets of an accused even at the inquiry stage. The National Accountability Order (NAO), 1999, confers wide powers to NAB to frame its own rules for carrying out the purposes of the Ordinance. Furthure information about the roles of NAB in Pakistan is disscused in next section.

Plea Bargain

According to section 25(b) of the National Accountability Ordinance of 1999, known as “plea bargaining”. If an accused person agrees to return the illicit money after the commencement of the investigation or a jury trial. The defendant may enter into a plea bargain, subject to court approval. NAB officials say that prosecution and conviction of white-collar criminals is a complex and time-consuming process. Plea bargain helps NAB in making recoveries from those who make confessions and return some part of the amount. NAB has recently recovered billions of rupees through plea bargain. On the other hand, the critics of plea bargaining assert that it is a free license and incentive to those who want to engage in corrupt practices.

NAB Roles in Pakistan to free from Corruption

The purpose of creating awareness is to develop zero-tolerance attitude in the society, towards corruption. NAB Roles in Pakistan to give awareness strategy builds around character building, building political will and using all means including the media to create awareness against corruption. NAB Ordinance empowers the Bureau to form committees to initiate awareness activities, like disseminating information through media campaigns and educational programs. Creating awareness in the general public and in public authorities, about corruption, its adverse effects and measures that can be taken to eliminate it.

NAB’s awareness campaign focuses particularly on the youth and building up coalitions. For the purpose, regional NAB offices, have been conducting seminars, workshops, debates and poster competitions with awards for winners. NAB has also been conducting lectures and presentations on good governance, adverse effects of corruption and role of youth in making a corruption-free Pakistan, at educational institutions to create awareness about corruption among students. Seminars were also organized in collaboration with Anti-Corruption Establishment and Transparency International.

Senior NAB officials have been participating in different radio/TV programs as part of anti-corruption campaign. Anti-corruption day, too, is celebrated on 9th December every year. ‘Character Building Societies’ are being promoted in educational institutions.

Appointment Mechanism of Chairman NAB

Chairman NAB is appointed through consensus by the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. There is no external control and the organization is answerable only to the President. However, in practice, NAB is not free from political pressures.

Annual Reports by NAB

NAB has to submit annual reports to the President but the law does not give any guidelines as to the contents of the report. Annual reports are publicized for public information. However, it is the researchers’ opinion that the NAB’s official website is not as impressivea.

Internal Code of Conduct and Ethics

Internal integrity and accountability mechanisms are guided by a Code of Conduct and Ethics. But no notable case against any NAB employee, during the tenure of service, has ever surfaced or reached the public domain. However, in 2013, NAB took action against its own Chairman in NICL mega corruption scam.

External Accountability Mechanism to Monitor NAB

There is no external accountability mechanism to monitor NAB’s actions. But the higher courts have been exercising their supervisory jurisdiction and power of judicial review whenever NAB transgresses its limits. For instance, appointments of Chairmen of NAB by the President of Pakistan have been a times declared ultra vires the ordinance and thus illegal, by the Supreme Court.

NAB’s Independence but with Oversight

An independent and powerful anti-corruption watchdog is central to control of corruption, but not without due controls or oversight. In the UK for instance, the independent Director of Public Prosecutions acts as a gatekeeper and no proceeding for an offence under the Bribery Act 2010 can be instituted without his consent. In case of NAB, the Prosecutor General continues to operate under the Chairman’s shadow. Similarly, many countries have put in place parliament and citizens oversight mechanisms to ensure impartiality of the anti-corruption agencies, but no such mechanism exists in Pakistan.

Notwithstanding these omissions, the revised Ordinance is a step in the right direction. Going forward it will be important for the government to stand behind these changes and even consider further improvement to enhance the impartiality and credibility of the statute. Moreover, it is important for the government to take the opposition on board with these amendments. But most importantly, more than the law, it’s the practice that matters. The ultimate litmus test of these amendments would therefore be their unbiased application on existing political cases.

Reference: Ace Bureaucrat Academy