International Anti-Corruption Day: President for effective steps to fight corruption

President Mamnoon Hussain underlined the need for effective measures to curb corruption in the country.

ISLAMABAD:

President Mamnoon Hussain on Tuesday underlined the need for effective measures to curb corruption in the country.

He was addressing a seminar on “Say no to corruption” organised by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in connection with the International Anti-Corruption Day.

The president emphasised rigorous implementation of anti-corruption laws. He said that corruption posed a grave threat to the very fabric of a society. “Unchecked corruption not only erodes democratic institutions and stunts economic growth but also degrades values. Therefore, there is a need to devise cohesive strategies and plan of action to fight and uproot corruption from Pakistani society,” the president said.

The president also called for further strengthening the anti-corruption departments and institutions, particularly NAB. He said impartial application of the rule of law was vital to control corrupt practices.

Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal said that the government was committed to eradicating corruption from the society and raising Pakistan’s transparency ranking.

He said that the NAB today was not being used for political victimisation and was purely an impartial and apolitical organisation focused on eliminating corruption. Iqbal said that corruption stifles growth, shies away investment and undermines democracy.

NAB Chairman Qamar Zaman appreciated the role of the government in its commitment to eradicate corruption from the country. Qamar said that in the last one year NAB has recovered over Rs4 billion of looted public money, bringing the total recovery to date to Rs261 billion.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 10^th, 2014.