Firdous asks opposition to cooperate with NAB

Special assistant on information says the anti-graft institution is an independent institution

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Firdous Ashiq Awan, special assistant to the prime minister on information, has said that rather than threatening the National Accountability Bureau, opposition parties should cooperate with the anti-corruption watchdog's ongoing investigations.

“Playing hide and seek with NAB will not help you [opposition]," she said in a press briefing on Tuesday. "If NAB has transgressed its jurisdiction the opposition should approach the court."

The statement came as a rebuttal to PML-N's senior vice president Shahid Khaqan Abbasi press briefing earlier in the day, who accused NAB of victimisation, saying those who wanted to save their skin should join the government ranks.

Maintaining that she was not a spokesperson of the anti-graft body, Firdous asked NAB to clarify the allegations leveled against it by opposition parties.

NAB, she added, was an independent institution working under the constitution, and the government had no influence over its workings.

Meanwhile, she announced that finance adviser Hafeez Shaikh would address a briefing on Saturday to inform the nation about the government's long-term economic agenda.

She defended the appointment of PTI leader Usman Dar as PM’s special assistant on youth affairs, saying he was the best choice.