Grading, internal accountability systems to improve NAB output

Bureau’s chief says rationalisation of workload providing dividends

ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Chairman Qamar Zaman Chaudhry on Friday said that the introduction of the Partly Quantified Grading System and an Internal Accountability Mechanism (IAM) had improved quality of their output considerably.

Chairing a meeting to review the performance of NAB’s Operation Division at the bureau’s headquarters on Friday, he said that 2014 had been a year of re-invigoration for the bureau as the tempo and momentum generated in that year had been sustained.

Addressing the meeting, Chaudhry said corruption was the root cause of all evil and that recovering looted money and deposit in the national exchequer was a top priority for the anti-corruption watchdog.

NAB officers, he said, did not receive any money from looted money they had recovered and had deposited it in the government accounts.

With the incumbent management trying to put NAB back on track, he said that after a thorough and comprehensive analysis of deficiencies in the structure and operations, a reform and restructuring programme was put in place which has not only gave a new lease of life to the organisation but also infused it with a new character - a character marked by fairness, objectivity, professionalism and transparency.

He added that the introduction of a Combined Investigation Team (CIT) review of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to make them relevant to modern times, clearly defined job descriptions, rational timelines for completing inquiries and investigations, capacity building training tailored to specific job requirements and rationalisation of workload had started showing results.

During the meeting, the chairman reviewed the performance of the Operation Division and the status of implementation of decisions taken at the previous meeting. It was found that almost all of the decisions taken had been implemented.

Chaudhry stressed the importance of team work and said that the Operation Division had been strengthened to evolve a strong mechanism for catching the corrupt.

The NAB chief said that a regular review of the performance of Operation Division would provide an opportunity to further improve their performance and overcome any shortcomings in order to discharge their duty. Moreover, a future course of action would be devised with the firm resolve to eradicate corruption.

“We have successfully established three new regions in Multan, Sukkur and Gilgit-Baltistan,” Chaudhry said, adding, “NAB has automated its system and a computerised Monitoring and Evaluation System (MES) has been introduced in the NAB Headquarter and all regional bureaus.”

Published in The Express Tribune, July 1^st, 2017.