- The damage to reputations cannot be undone
Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Mr Justice Athar Minallah’s remarks about the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) go to the heart of one of the main problems with the whole accountability process, especially under the PTI: the iniquity of arresting someone, then presenting him before the media in handcuffs, followed by a prolonged period in jail in custody, only to have him acquitted when the case goes to trial. Though acquitted, Mr Justice Minallah pointed out, the damage to reputation sustained, not to mention the humiliation felt because of the jailing and glare of publicity, are not compensated.
Mr Justice Minallah’s remarks are particularly pertinent because there have been a number of high-profile opposition figures arrested with much government fanfare by the Bureau, only for them to obtain bail at an early stage of their cases. An example is provided recently, by the bails obtained by PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal in the Narowal Sports City reference, and by former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi in the LNG reference. Mr Justice Minallah may well be highlighting the fact that these inconclusive cases may be doing the government more harm than good. The government itself is very emphatic that NAB acts independently. If it does, it has been acting in a singularly pro-PTI manner. Not only has it been arresting opposition leaders, it has been scrapping investigations against government figures. The impression exists that NAB is doing the government’s bidding. This is bad for the government, as it lets NAB incompetence or lack of professionalism come in the way of the PTI’s accountability drive. It will let the corrupt get away on the plea that they are being victimised.
NAB should sit up and take notice. Not only should it realise what sort of reputation it has developed, but also the damage it is doing to the government. It must shake off any influence there might be on it, and let the chips lie where they might fall. So far, the legal provisions governing it have survived the judicial tests, but if NAB is misused, or even seen as less than scrupulously fair, it is well within the realm of possibility for the courts to start examining the law which gives it its existence. If that law allows the government of the day to use it as a tool against political opponents, it may not be allowed to survive.
