ISLAMABAD: Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Justice Javed Iqbal retd) has said that NAB made recoveries of Rs535 billion and achieved overall conviction ratio of 66 percent under his leadership.
"This is a remarkable achievement in the investigation of white-collar crimes in the world," the NAB chief said in a statement on Sunday.
NAB, he said, recovered Rs535 billion from October 2017 to June 2021. According to the related data shared by NAB, it filed 93 out of a total of 179 mega corruption cases. The cases are under trial in various accountability courts. Of them, 10 cases are at the inquiry stage and 10 mega corruption cases are at investigation stages.
Logical conclusion of mega corruption cases is the top most priority of NAB, the accountability watchdog has said. Some 66 percent of the total 179 mega corruption cases have been disposed of as per law, NAB said.
There are 1273 NAB's references of approximately Rs13 billion under trial in different accountability courts throughout the country. The NAB chief said the accountability watchdog has chalked out an effective national anti-corruption strategy.
He cited surveys indicating that 59 percent people of Pakistan have shown trust upon NAB which, he said, is "ample evidence of NAB's across the board accountability as per law."
Iqbal said the reputed national and international organisations like Transparency International Pakistan, World Economic Forum, Global Peace Canada and others have lauded NAB's efforts to eliminate corruption.
Chairman NAB said major focus of NAB is to take on corruption and corrupt practices, money laundering, cases of cheating the public at large, wilful bank loan defaults, and misuse of authority and embezzlement of state funds.
"NAB strongly believes in eradication of corruption and recovering looted money from corrupt people as its top most priority in order to make Pakistan corruption-free. NAB's aim is corruption-free Pakistan-NAB is the focal organisation of Pakistan under United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC)," the chairman NAB said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021