NAB chairman: Zardari, Bilawal to meet PM Shehbaz Sharif today

ISLAMABAD: Top Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leaders Asif Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto will meet Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif today to discuss the appointment of chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB), ARY NEWS reported.

The meeting between Asif Zardari, Bilawal Bhutto and Shehbaz Sharif will be held at the Prime Minister House, where the latter would hold a reception in honour of PPP leaders.

The meeting would discuss the appointment of NAB chairman and other political issues besides also mulling over reservations expressed by MQM-P against the Sindh government.

Recently, Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Raja Riaz said an appointment for the NAB chairman will be made soon.

Raja Riaz in his statement said that decision on the appointment of new NAB chairman will be taken in the current week and in this context he will hold a consultation with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Consensus will be reached during a consultation with PM Sharif, he added.

Four names including Justice Maqbool Baqir, Ikhlaq Tarar, former FIA Chairman Bashir Memon and Aftab Sultan have been shortlisted for the position.

The name of Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqir has been dropped from the list of candidates under consideration for the position of chairman of NAB and the government has been unable to create consensus as those it considered earlier either don’t meet the qualification criteria or are not likely to meet the expectation of key stakeholders.

Justice Baqir’s name was suggested by former President Asif Ali Zardari. While Former FIA chairman Bashir Memon’s name was suggested by PML-N.

The position has been unoccupied since the formed chairman Justice (R) Javed Iqbal retired on Jun 2, 2022.