The cabinet has approved the draft of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Amendment Ordinance through a circulation summary, Aaj News reported on Wednesday.

It will likely be forwarded to President Arif Alvi today (Wednesday) for approval.

Govt decides to extend NAB chief’s tenure

The proposed draft includes a provision to retain the current NAB chairman until a new chairman is appointed. It also includes a provision to consult the Leader of the Opposition on the appointment of the NAB chairman.

NAB chief's extension

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government decided to extend the tenure of the incumbent National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman former Justice Javed Iqbal till a new successor is appointed.

For this purpose, a summary was prepared for the promulgation of an ordinance for extending the tenure of the NAB chief.

Legal experts see 'crisis' if tenure of NAB chief extended through ordinance

The current NAB Chairman Justice Iqbal was appointed on October 8, 2017, following a consensus between the then PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Leader of the Opposition Syed Khursheed Shah.

The incumbent chairman NAB is completing his four-year term on October 8. However, the prime minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif did not hold a consultation to pick his successor.