Shahid Khaqan Abbasi calls for NAB's abolition

Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has called for the abolition of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), criticising its inefficiency.

"NAB has been in place for 25 years and has only managed to convict one politician—Nawaz Sharif. No one in the bureaucracy is willing to work because of fear. NAB is the most corrupt institution in Pakistan."

Addressing a private media forum in Lahore, the leader of the Awaam Pakistan Party (APP) urged the need for a complete overhaul of the system, one that created new relationships between institutions.

"The government makes laws for itself, not for the people. We are the only country in the world that cannot even ask its citizens if they pay taxes," he lamented. He also noted the gross inequality in the tax system, where salaried individuals pay up to 39.5% in taxes while professionals like doctors and lawyers contribute nothing.

"Countries that impose such high taxes provide care from cradle to grave, but here, we can't even ask basic tax questions."

Abbasi lamented the country's social challenges, pointing out that millions of children were out of school, the highest number in the world and asked, "Has any chief minister taken steps to bring them back to school?"

"Before handing out awards to athletes like Arshad Nadeem, let's first focus on getting children into classrooms."

Abbasi stressed that political leadership, both in government and opposition, has failed to address the country's core issues.