By The Senate has voted to extend the National Accountability Ordinance, 2023, for an additional 120 days. This decision was made after a resolution was put forth by Law Minister Ahmad Irfan Aslam, in compliance with Article 89 of the Constitution, and will come into effect on October 31, 2023.
The Senate session, presided over by Senate Chairman Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani, took place amid concerns and debate regarding the extension of the ordinance.
The ordinance was initially promulgated by Mr. Sanjrani while President Dr. Arif Alvi was in Saudi Arabia, based on the advice of former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
The key amendments introduced by the ordinance include an extension of the physical remand period from 14 to 30 days for arrested individuals.
Furthermore, it grants the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman the authority to issue arrest warrants for individuals who fail to cooperate with investigations and allows the anti-graft watchdog to make arrests during the inquiry stage.
The extension of the ordinance, however, did not go without its critics. PTI parliamentary leader Senator Syed Ali Zafar raised concerns about passing the resolution, citing the Supreme Court’s previous declaration that amendments made in the NAB law were unconstitutional.
He suggested that the proposed law should be sent to a committee for further examination, particularly concerning the right of appeal.
Zafar stressed the importance of not giving retrospective appeal rights under Article 184 (3) of the Constitution, as the amendment seemed to be person-specific, primarily targeting the Panama case against former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
Former Law Minister and PML-N Senator Azam Nazeer Tarar, on the other hand, argued that the Supreme Court had accepted the parliament’s authority to legislate.
He highlighted that only 30% of the NAB Amendment law had been struck down by a three-member Supreme Court bench through a 2-1 decision. Tarar defended the need for the ordinance, emphasizing the necessity to reorganize the NAB.
Senator Ishaq Dar, Leader of the House, expressed concerns over the controversial nature of some Supreme Court decisions made under suo motu notices, particularly the Panama Papers case.
Senator Kamran Murtaza of JUI-F questioned the legality of extending the ordinance and called for President Arif Alvi’s resignation for not specifying a date for elections under Article 48 of the Constitution.
The confusion surrounding the President’s authority in this matter was also highlighted by Senator Humayun Mohmand. He called for the disbandment of NAB and questioned the role it played in the country’s political landscape.
Several other senators, including Saadia Abbasi, Irfan Siddiqui, Mushahid Hussain Sayed, and Manzoor Kakar, expressed their concerns about NAB’s transparency, efficiency, and overall effectiveness in its investigations and prosecutions.
This Senate decision to extend the controversial Accountability Ordinance has ignited a heated debate, with questions raised about its constitutionality and the need for further scrutiny of its amendments. The future of NAB and its role in Pakistan’s politics remains a subject of intense discussion.
