PPP says NAB ordinance 'mother of all NROs'

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People's Party (PPP) leader Qamar Zaman Kaira on Sunday slammed the government for the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Amendment Ordinance 2019 by referring to it as the "mother of all NROs".

"Khan sahab accused us of asking for NROs all this while. The NAB ordinance is the mother of all NROs. What will he say about that," asked Kaira during a press conference. 

He accused the government of bringing about amendments in the NAB ordinance to save itself from accountability. Kaira said the anti-graft body only held people from the two political parties accountable. 

"Those who joined the PTI were washed of all their sins," he said, accusing the government of filing case corruption cases against the PPP and the PML-N. 

The PPP leader wondered who the prime minister was referring to in his speech on Saturday where he accused some people of objecting to the government's reforms. 

"Who was the prime minister referring to when he spoke about someone objecting to reforms? He should clarify this," said Kaira. 

Kaira said the prime minister was about to take the last u-turn of his political career. 

"Khan sahab will now take one last U-turn, due to which he will leave politics the same way he came into it," he said. "This will be his biggest U-turn of all."

The PPP leader, without naming anyone in particular, said those who were selected were used for a particular time and then sent home. He said the PPP did not want to go to move court over menial issues.

Kaira added that the party wanted to discuss the NAB ordinance in parliament, which was the proper forum for discussion on it. 

PPP workers targeted in 'politically-motivated FIR'

Kaira slammed the government for registering "politically-motivated FIRs" against PPP workers for chanting slogans during the party's December 27 rally at Liaquat Bagh.

He said the government couldn't tolerate it when political parties apart from the PTI and its allies held political rallies. Kaira said the youth were charged during the December 27 rally and "they got carried away" while chanting slogans. He urged the government to withdraw the first information report (FIR).

The PPP leader also accused the government of trying to stop the PPP from holding its rally at Liaquat Bagh by sending party chairperson, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, notices from the NAB. 

Kaira said the movement against the government "had taken off" and no one will be able to stop it anymore.