Kaira likely to be gifted Ch Nisar's slot in PAC

Tariq Butt
ISLAMABAD: The main accountability arm of the National Assembly, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), is in limbo with the impending resignation of its chairman Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and the government set to gift the slot to a loyalist.

Former Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira, who recently replaced his party mate Aftab Shaaban Mirani in the PAC as member, is speculated to head the powerful parliamentary body in place of Chaudhry Nisar when the position falls vacant.

Kaira happened to be in Norway on Saturday. When called by The News, he did not attend his cell phone. It is learnt that the government aims to bring a strong person like Kaira as the PAC chairman.

However, if Kaira was assigned this berth, it would be violation of the Charter of Democracy (CoD) signed by Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto five years back.

The relevant CoD clause says the chairmen of public accounts committees in the national and provincial assemblies will be appointed by the leaders of opposition in these bodies. Chaudhry Nisar got this position courtesy of the CoD.

Some PAC members belonging to the ruling PPP this correspondent talked to were confused. They did not know whether or nor Chaudhry Nisar would continue as the PAC chief and who would be the next chairman after his exit.

They were also unaware of convening of the PAC session in near future. The PAC met some three months ago.

Its incumbent chief has no plan to summon it as he did not want to chair it when Akhtar Buland Rana, the newly appointed Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP), would assist it. The opposition opposed his appointment tooth and nail but the government went ahead with its decision.

"It is clear that Chaudhry Nisar will not preside over the PAC any more and his resignation is just a matter of time," a senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader told The News. Whenever the PAC would meet, it would take up the audit reports relating to the present government starting from its first year, 2008, in office.

"Chaudhry Nisar doesn't want to preside the PAC when a tainted crony of the prime minister, Akhtar Buland Rana, will assist it," the PML-N leader said.

He said that the AGP office worked considerably well when Tanvir Ali Agha headed it, but with Rana's induction, it has become a useless body. "Rana will not be of any help to Chaudhry Nisar headed PAC. But he would be very helpful to the PAC presided over by a government nominee as he would give all well report to it."

Before rendering the PAC dysfunctional, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) stood emasculated after the appointment of its Chairman Justice (R) Deedar Hussain Shah was struck down by the Supreme Court. No new chairman has been appointed and there is no immediate official plan to make the nomination at an early date.

Another key organisation, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), too has become inconsequential during the tenure of the present government.

The Supreme Court has repeatedly expressed lack of confidence in the NAB as well as the FIA. So, in total all the four bodies, the PAC, AGP, NAB and FIA, which look into corruption, malpractices and irregularities of the government, stand knocked down.