LAHORE (Staff Report) – The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) has demanded that Panama leaks scandal should be probed under the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).
In a press release issued on Thursday, the SCBA said that the UNCAC specifically deals with corruption and money laundering issues in many countries and its help could only be viable and practical.
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The Panama leaks have revealed corruption at the highest level in Pakistan, the SCBA noted, while a judicial or an inquiry commission or a parliamentary body could not collect relevant evidence outside boundaries of Pakistan and seeking formation of a domestic commission would be a futile exercise.
“In such cases, the name of the beneficiary or the source of funds for acquisition of assets or offshore properties is carefully hidden, hence, the biggest challenge is to unearth the evidence,” the statement read.
The SCBA added that the government of Pakistan could initiate the process and show its intention to get the assistance of the UNCAC by promulgating an ordinance authorising the Chief Justice of Pakistan to nominate a national task force to probe the matter.
This National Task Force may employ financial investigators, accountants, members of law enforcing agencies, legal or other experts and a well-known forensic institution to probe the matter.
The National Task Force shall publish and shall make public its findings and conclusions itself without any reference to the Government of Pakistan.
The National Task Force should have available the services of the FBR, the SBP, the FIA and the NAB for the purposes of implementing any directions of the National Task Force.
