By Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: The federal government is about to table another bill in the National Assembly (NA) to amend the National Accountability Ordinance (NAO), 1999, aimed at providing relief to politicians, bureaucrats and federal and provincial public office holders, federal or provincial taxation, levies or imposts in discharge of their duties.
The bill is a result of long and hectic consultations between Prime Minister Imran Khan and the top bureaucrats who demanded to reform the accountability law to enable them undertake projects with our fear from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
NAB has been under strong criticism from the opposition as well treasury benches for arresting politicians, bureaucrats and private consultants and often its legal team fails to prove its references in the courts.
The opposition may support the bill whose top leaders have been rounded up by NAB have long been asking the federal government to reform the accountability law to make the accountability process transparent and fair. The bill would also provide relief to the bureaucrats and businessmen who have also were not ready to undertake mega projects and investments due to fear of NAB.
The draft bill, National
Accountability (Second Amendment) Act, 2020, seeks to transfer all inquiries and investigations into matters pertaining to federal and provincial taxation, levies or imposts to the respective authorities or departments which administer the relevant laws of taxation, levies or imposts in question.
“This Ordinance extends to the whole of Pakistan and shall apply to all persons, including those persons who are or have been in the service of Pakistan. except in respect of persons and transactions specified in sub-section (2),” reads the bill.
According to the draft bill, the trials of federal or provincial taxation, levies or imposts would also be transferred from the relevant accountability courts to the criminal courts which deal with offences under the respective laws pertaining to taxation, levies or imposts in question.
The bill says that the bill would also apply on any person or entity, or transaction in relation thereto, who or which are not directly or indirectly connected with a holder of public office, except offences falling under clauses (ix), (x) and (xi) of sub-section (a) of section 9 of the NAO, 1999.
“With regard to procedural lapses in any government project or scheme, no action under this Ordinance shall be taken against any holder of public office, unless it is shown that the holder of public office, his dependents or benamidars have benefitted by gaining any material benefit, and there is evidence to corroborate the acquiring of such benefit,” reads the bill.
The bill also brings relief to the bureaucrats dealing with major projects and schemes.
“With regard to any matter pertaining to the rendition of any advice, opinion or report, no action under this Ordinance shall be taken against any holder of public office, unless it is shown that the holder of public office, his dependents or benamidars have gained any material benefit, and there is evidence to corroborate such benefit,” reads the draft bill.
“Notwithstanding anything contained in this Ordinance or any other law for the time being in force, the valuation of immovable properties, for the purposes of assessing as to whether a holder of public office has assets disproportionate to his known sources of income, shall be reckoned either according to the applicable rate prescribed by the District Collector or the Federal Board of Revenue, whichever is higher. No evidence contrary to the latter shall be admissible,” the draft bill states.
The amendment is being made for the purposes that nothing shall be construed as ‘misuse of authority’ by a holder of public office unless there is corroborative evidence of any material benefit drawn by a public office holder, his dependents or benamidars relating to that transaction.
The bill says that an act done in good faith and in the discharge of duties and performance of official functions shall not unless there is corroborative evidence of accumulation of any material benefit from that act, constitute an offence.
“The Court shall provide to the accused copies of the Reference along with all the documents attached to the Reference. The accused shall within fourteen days of the receipt of the documents identify to the Court the documents which the accused admits, which shall not require any proof,” reads another proposed amendment.
