ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee has decided to summon National Accountability Bureau chief Justice (r) Javed Iqbal as officials failed to convince it about the shelving of the anti-corruption probe in the Reqo Dik scam.
During an in-camera meeting chaired National Assembly Opposition Leader Khursheed Shah, various stakeholders – legal team representing Pakistan in the international court of arbitration and scientist Dr Samar Mubarakmand – in the project made contradictory claims before the committee.
The PAC has been holding in-camera meetings after Tethyan Copper Company (TCC) filed damaged claims of $11.34 billion and the subsequent embarrassment faced by Pakistan at the international level. It may be mentioned here that this was the second PAC in-camera meeting to ascertain the causes of the Reqo Dik scam.
Dr Samar apprised the PAC that the TCC had named eight people that sought bribes from it as it submitted a list to the International Court for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) of the World Bank.
The outlet reported that a legal team member, however, contradicted the claims of Dr Samar, saying the TCC had not submitted any such list to the ICISD.
In 2012, the TCC filed claims for international arbitration before the ICSID after Balochistan government turned down a leasing request from the company. The ICSID proceedings are in the quantum stage where the TCC has claimed an amount of $11.431 billion in damages.
The claim is corroborated by a number of expert reports and financial models, the PAC was informed. The TCC expects a ruling on the quantum of damages in April 2019.
In June 2015, the NAB received a complaint against provincial government officials for their alleged corruption in the Reko Diq scam.
