Govt rejects Transparency International’s ‘biased’ corruption report

Firdous Ashiq Awan alleges Pakistan chapter of the organisation was given favours by the previous PML-N government

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan on Friday rejected the latest ‘biased’ report by Transparency International on corruption in Pakistan.

Talking to the media at Parliament House in Islamabad, she said the report is not fair and transparent and added that it has also been rejected by the masses since it apparently has been managed by the "kings of corruption sitting abroad".

Awan also alleged that the Pakistan chapter of the organisation was given favours by the previous Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government.

“Giving clean chits to those whose corruption cases were pending before the court clearly indicates the nexus between these elements and the Pakistan chapter of Transparency International,” she said adding that the report itself raises questions on the transparency and credibility of the institution.

The special assistant further said the incumbent PTI government is committed to rid the country of corruption and all the corrupt practices.

Awan maintained that Prime Minister Imran Khan has never compromised in the fight against corruption and will never do so in the future.

“World institutions such as Moody's are endorsing and appreciating the improvement in economic indicators of Pakistan. While the world acknowledges Imran Khan’s credibility, such reports cannot hoodwink the world,” she lamented.

Awan reiterated that unprecedented recoveries were made from the corrupt elements over the last year. These recoveries are more than the ones made during the last ten years.

In a blow to the credibility of the ruling PTI, Pakistan’s ranking on global corruption perception index slipped to a five-year low of 120 out of 180 nations, highlighting further erosion of people’s confidence in the government which came into power with the slogan of accountability.

The Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) is an index published annually by the Transparency International (IT) which ranks countries “by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys.”

Pakistan is among dozens of nations where perceived corruption has worsened significantly over the past years, said the Transparency International’s latest CPI report, released on Thursday.