The Broadsheet story

When Pervez Musharraf overthrew Nawaz Sharif as country’s prime minister in 1999 he sought evidence of Sharif’s alleged corruption in properties and cash stashed abroad to buoy his case against Sharif in more popular terms than the stated and the more technical case of forced hijacking while en-route from Sri Lanka. What many don’t know is how the air was pregnant with the possibility of each man acting against the other in the months leading to the moment since Kargil. Musharraf was more likely to be sacked. He was instead elevated to the position of the Chairman Joint Chiefs along with being the army chief to appease his sense of unease. That Nawaz ultimately resorted to remove Musharraf in a tardy, scheming way and far too late in the waiting game meant he had lost the moment and the moral authority to his decision while giving opportunity to Musharraf to strike back.

It was thus that Musharraf wished to make his case against Sharif watertight. The FIA already had evidence of massive corruption from alleged kickbacks by Sharifs collected by the indomitable Rehman Malik in a tit-for tat for Sharifs’ pursuit of the Bhuttos for equally damning allegations of piling ill-gotten wealth. Zardari had been incarcerated by the Sharifs for some of those charges and was in jail. Benazir chose to self-exile. The stories of their corruption were fabled. Sharifs too had bought expensive properties in London and it was this that Malik had been after. And he hadn’t done bad. To build on this Musharraf created NAB (National Accountability Bureau) of whose head he appointed a much respected general, Syed Mohammad Amjad, with the task to arraign the Sharifs. NAB, itself was a follow-up to Sharif’s Ehtesab Bureau made to hound the Bhuttos. The circus was well established. Both sides stood equally guilty and maligned in public perception. (To save from the ignominy of public disgrace the two sides signed a Charter of Democracy in 2007 to cease fire on a debilitating internecine warfare between them).

Amjad got to work and was introduced to a US based company through a Tariq Fawad Malik — a former air force officer chucked out in his very early days of service for wayward conduct and with absolutely nothing to do in the field of discovering unexplained wealth. He however later earned the sobriquet of being another general’s son-in-law; a connection that enabled him easy access to NAB. Amjad fell for the deal and Malik and Jerry James, the proprietor of the US-based company, founded Broadsheet in the UK to enter into formal contract with NAB. Seed money ought to have been paid; some say five million USDs. Broadsheet was claimed to be manned by individuals who had experience with dark money from their work in Panama. Over time Broadsheet got a list of 200 Pakistanis to collect information, record and evidence on of their undeclared accounts, assets and funds abroad.

Two things happened soon after. One, as the general and Broadsheet closed on to the Sharifs — Nawaz and Shahbaz were incarcerated — entered a fraternal nation in the fray which wanted Sharifs out of incarceration. Musharraf was to find an escape for the Sharifs. Traditional brotherly relations were the leverage. Unable to say no to the big brother Musharraf succumbed, most likely at a reasonable compensation to the national kitty if not personal benefit, and dropped intended suits against the Sharifs. They left the shores soon after to safety. Amjad retired; a new NAB head was appointed and the list to pursue was circumscribed.

Monies belonging to politicians — Sharifs and Bhuttos included — bureaucrats, generals and businessmen were unearthed but a new compulsion soon took over. Rather than bring the stealers of national money to book and recover the stolen amounts the information and evidence was used to buy allegiance and political alignment for a political set-up which was to give longevity to Musharraf in power. Some were prosecuted. In 2003 the contract with Broadsheet was unilaterally cancelled and the company was dissolved. The evidence remained as did the records of misappropriation except that the state had chosen to abdicate responsibility towards the plunderers and their loot.

Tariq Malik, however, continued to own an office in NAB and work from it. In 2007 Broadsheet was resurrected and a payment was made as settlement to Jerry James who through Malik was now threatening to take NAB to court for breach of contract. The GoP promptly paid 1.5 million dollars in the personal account of James to avoid going to the court. The company was declared bankrupt soon after. Kaveh Mousavi acquired the company and brought it to life again in 2008. In 2008 investigations opened against Tariq Malik who absconded abroad and has seemingly settled there. Jerry James committed suicide in 2011.

Mousavi reinitiated interactions with NAB to complete the pending work on the lucrative terms of the initial contract but did not find traction. He then chose to agitate the court for arbitration and laid claims for the reason of breach of contract by NAB. This had already been settled with Jerry James but he no longer owned the shell company. Mousavi’s claims included held records and investigations made by internal agencies of GoP as well as misappropriations established in the public domain. Allegedly some figures were work done as recently as 2016 by Pakistani agencies. We failed to inform the court that GoP had already paid up twice to the company for zero returns. Another pretender made up to the high and mighty in the government and suggested paying up to Mousavi than face even bigger damages. We have duly complied and added another 28 million USD to payment in-lieu. Broadsheet under each of its iteration has now milked ‘cow-Pakistan’ to the tune of over 30 million USD without doing a penny’s worth of work. Mousavi is a star on our evening television and holds the moment while the sun shines on him. Where else do you get free money and be a star at the same time than in an impoverished, buffeted, disorganised and fragmented Pakistan. That’s our story.

Within the last two weeks Pakistan has had a PIA aircraft impounded for non-payment of the lease amount; has been slapped with a penalty of six billion USD in the case of Reko Diq; has had two of its prime properties abroad attached to the same case; has got its official account abroad sealed; had a judge in London levy penalty in the Broadsheet case; and has paid up thirty million USD to a set of conmen who have sat in its offices and milked the monies abroad. What goes on inside is in addition. A graft and terror case in France has Pakistan being mentioned daily as a party and the point of crime.

Who are we? A Banana Republic? In the hands of banana sellers? The bigger issue: is it any better now? Sadly not. Fly-by-night carpetbaggers descend with each government and chew away our vitals. We in turn revel in authority but in complete absolution of responsibility.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 24^th, 2021.

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