ISLAMABAD: The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Tuesday has further tightened the noose around the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership as it decides to file another corruption reference against the PML-N President, Shehbaz Sharif, and a supplementary reference against PML-N Vice President Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and others in the Liquefied National Gas (LNG) scam. The decision to file two corruption references and one supplementary reference was taken in an Executive Board Meeting (EBM) of NAB, which was presided over by bureau Chairman former Justice Javed Iqbal, a senior official said.
He said the EBM approved to file a reference against Shehbaz Sharif, his sons, Hamza Shehbaz Sharif, Salman Shehbaz Sharif and others for accumulating assets beyond means of worth Rs7,328 million.
According to a NAB investigation, the accused persons "laundered" their disproportionate funds under the garb of foreign remittances, loans, which had proved to be fake/fictitious for those assets, he said, adding that the accused persons were also operating benami companies held in the name of their employees/associates to place the proceeds of crimes for their own benefits.
He said the bureau also decided to file a supplementary reference against former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, his son Abdullah Khaqan Abbasi, former finance minister Miftah Ismail and others on charges of awarding the LNG terminal-1 contract in a "non-transparent" manner.
The other accused include former chairman Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) Board, Sheikh Imranul Haq, former chief executive officer (CEO) of Engro Elengy Terminal Private Limited (EETPL) and Managing Director (MD) Pakistan States Oil (PSO), Agha Jan Akhtar, former chairman Port Qasim Authority (PQA), Saeed Ahmed Khan, former chairman Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra), Aamir Naseem, former Member Oil Ogra, Uzma Adil Khan, former Chairperson Ogra, Shahid M Islam, former MD PSO, Husain Dawood, Chairman, Engro Corporation Limited, Abdul Samad Dawood, Director Engro Corporation Limited and others.
According to the NAB, the accused public office holder misused their authorities in active connivance with each other to give wrongful gains of Rs14.146 billion to the EETL/ETPL/ECL in connection with the LNG Terminal-1 of the EETL and also caused a wrongful loss of Rs7.438 billion (approximately) for non-utilisation of unused capacity of 2nd LNG Terminal of the PGPL from March, 2015 till September 2019.
Hence, a total liability becomes Rs21.584 billion (approximately) till September, 2019.
In this respect, it is pertinent to mention here that further loss to be incurred for the next 10 years will amount to Rs47 billion (approximately) as the said contract will expire on March, 2029.
During the period, unexplained deposits of Rs1.426 billion were received in the accounts of Abdullah Khaqan Abbasi, and Rs1.294 billion was received in the bank accounts of Shahid Khaqan Abbasi during the period from 2013 to 2017, during which the above said LNG Terminal deal was struck.
By concealing the origin of above said deposits and layering, the accused also "committed" offence of money laundering.
He said the EBM also okayed another reference against officers/officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and others regarding corruption and corrupt practices in the sale of Embassy of Pakistan building at Jakarta, Indonesia.
During the period from 2001-2002, Major General Syed Mustafa Anwar Hussain (retd), while posted as Ambassador of Pakistan at Jakarta, Indonesia sold out building of Pakistan Embassy at Jakarta at a "throwaway" price through a "non-transparent" procedure and "without" lawful authority.
The accused, thereby, "caused" a loss of US $1.32 million.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020