After polls law, Alvi also declines to sign off NAB bill

ISLAMABAD:

President Arif Alvi on Monday declined to give his assent to the amendments to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) laws, calling the new legislation “regressive” in nature, a day after he returned the Election reforms bill without approving it.

In a letter to the prime minister, the president said that he believed that the NAB law bill, in its latest form would “promote corruption” by ensuring that the “long arm of the law” had been crippled.

“It is also a message to the corrupt, who have amassed tremendous wealth, of which there is no doubt in the minds of the people of Pakistan, that they are not accountable and are free to continue to plunder,” Alvi said, while giving his reasons for his refusal to sign the bill.

Last month, the National Assembly and the Senate passed the Elections (Amendment) Bill 2022 and the National Accountability (Second Amendment) Bill 2021, with a view to bringing necessary reforms the coalition parties had promised.

However, the president sent both the bills back to the government to reconsider them and on June 9, a joint sitting of parliament passed both the bills, as they were, casting aside the president’s objections.

After the second passage, according to the Constitution, president’s signature was just a formality, as the bill would be enacted without his assent after 10 days of their passage from the legislatures.

Read Alvi snubs electoral reforms, NAB bills

On Sunday, Alvi refused to give his assent to the Elections (Amendment) Bill but an official in the Presidency had confirmed that without the signature of the president, the bill would become the law on June 20 – 10 days after its passage on June 9.

Similarly, in view of the “deeming” provision under Article 75 (2) of the Constitution, the National Accountability (Amendment) Bill, 2022 would also be enacted into law even if the President of Pakistan did not sign it.

In the letter to the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Alvi expressed his apprehension that through the amendments to the NAB law, “the corrupt rich will remain free to continue with their blood sucking abhorrent practices”.

He went on say: “Having weak accountability is against the basic rights of the people of Pakistan who are the suffering masses, and therefore, it is also against the fundamentals of our Constitution itself.”

Alvi also pointed to the “flaws” in the law as observed by the judiciary. “This law like all other laws vesting authority in the executive was abused for political exigencies by those in power,” the president wrote to the prime minister.

“Because of this reason along with the role of vested interests, the accountability process in Pakistan became quite ineffective,” he said. “While the public clamoured for return of looted wealth, the long judicial processes involved, and ineffective prosecution actually made it very difficult to expose, prevent and eliminate corruption.”

Alvi emphasised the need for strong effort for improvement. “Our experiences of the last few decades should have guided us; to modify the law, avoid its miscarriage, close the glaring loopholes and make it stronger,” he said

Terming the changes enacted by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government the “least expected”, he said that the efforts of some previous governments were dumped and the principle of accountability, though upheld, was weakened beyond recognition.

“Weak laws such as this one create a facade of justice that blatantly hides a corrupt elite capture, and nations that accommodate such laws ensure a very damaging exploitation of the common man, perpetuating an unjust society,” Alvi said.

“I personally follow, uphold and abide by the Constitution of Pakistan, we must act upon the injunctions of the Quran and Sunnah, and above all, I am answerable to Allah and ask for His forgiveness. Therefore, I painfully state, that my conscience does not allow me to sign this Bill.”