LAHORE: Qamar Zaman Chaudhry, Chairman NAB, chairing a meeting at the NAB Headquarters, said corruption is a poison which not only causes delays to the early completion of development projects but also causes huge losses to national exchequer. It also increases inflation in the country by decreasing the buying power of the common man. He said the NAB has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China to enhance cooperation in eradication of corruption and oversee transparency in China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects in Pakistan.
He said the NAB has perfected its Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to rationalize the workload. He further said timelines have been prescribed for efficient, effective and expeditious disposal of cases putting a maximum limit of 10-month from complaint verification-to-inquiry-to-investigation and finally to a reference in the Accountability Court. In order to ensure uniformity and standardization, the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) in vogue were revised after a gap of 10 years to make these responsive to the needs of changed economic, social and technological realities along with goals and targets for smooth conduct of operational activities in accordance with law and bringing further improvements in the performance of the NAB Regional Bureaus.
Chairman NAB Qamar Zaman Chaudhry said the NAB had devised Partly Quantified Grading System (PQGS) to review and evaluate the performance of all the NAB Regional Bureaus on annual basis.
He said the NAB has devised Combined Investigation Team (CIT). The concept of CIT has indeed improved the quality of investigations as well as professional capacity of Investigation Officers (IOs). The Internal Accountability Mechanism (IAM) recently devised will ensure quick and effective monitoring and evaluation of all levels of workforce at the NAB.
He said the NAB has proposed to the Ministry of Law and Justice that Whistle Blowing Protection Act is imperative for the country under the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC). The Prime Minister and Federal Cabinet have approved of the Whistleblower Protection Bill which will now be sent to the National Assembly for necessary action. He said the basic object of the freedom of Information and whistleblower protection Act is to empower the citizens.
