Govt should not be linked to NAB’s actions: Awan

ISLAMABAD: The government's chief spokesperson Firdous Ashiq Awan on Friday said that the government should not be linked with the actions taken by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Her remarks came during a press briefing and were in reference to the arrest of Jang Geo Media Group's Editor-in-Chief Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman (MSR) a day earlier in a fake property case.

“The PTI government believes in freedom of the press and actions taken by the anti-graft body should not be viewed as [an attack on media freedom],” said the premier's special assistant on information and broadcasting.

"No one is a sacred cow and it is unfair to target the government for this," added Awan.

“[Jang Geo Media Group] should also take into account the government’s point of view. The government is not a party in this case. I wanted to talk to their management to hear their side of the case as we are also responsible for them.”

“Prime Minister Imran Khan is being targeted unfairly and a negative picture was portrayed. I had to clarify the government’s position on this,” said Awan.

“NAB is an independent body and it is their duty to present all the evidence in the court of law.”

She said that the government considers media as its partner and hailed Jang Geo Media Group’s independent editorial policies.

Praising the group's unbiased analyses on the government's policies, she said: "We take guidance from them."

"I am not NAB's spokesperson. If I were, I would have justified the arrest soon after it was made," she said. 

"You are a media organisation. How can we be at loggerheads with you," she asked, adding that the Group is not the government's political rival.

Referring to Prime Minister Imran Khan's remarks about MSR, she said that those had been made when he (MSR) "came out of the apex court and said that journalism is not my only business".

"We are looking at him [MSR] from two angles: as the head of a media institution and as a businessman," she said, adding: "This case was not made because he is the owner of a media house but, because he is a businessman."

"The issue is that of the allotment of 54 plots from the then provincial chief minister," she said, referring to Nawaz Sharif. "NAB provided [MSR] questionnaires in this regard to which he was unable to respond and based on which he was arrested."

 "[The Group] should not associate such actions with the government. They should not show just one side of the picture," she said. 

"I wanted to call and talk with Mir Ibrahim about the case and take his legal demands up with the premier, as this is my moral duty," she added.

NAB given 12-day remand of MSR

An accountability court on Friday gave a 12-day physical remand of Jang Geo Media Group's editor-in-chief to the anti-graft body in relation to a case involving the purchase of property more than 34 years ago.

The Jang Group CEO was brought to the accountability court under heavy security. A large contingent of police and other security officials was also present outside the courtroom.

During the hearing, MSR's lawyer, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, questioned why his client had not been shown his arrest warrants.

Ahsan told the court that NAB had not issued any notice to his client and that the Bureau did not hold the authority to make an arrest in the case without concrete evidence. 

NAB arrests Jang Geo Media Group's editor-in-chief

NAB had on Thursday arrested the editor-in-chief of the Jang Geo Media Group in connection with property allegedly bought illegally from a government entity more than 34 years ago.

The property was in fact bought from a private party 34 years ago and all evidence of this was given to NAB and legal requirements fulfilled, such as duty and taxes.

According to the Group's spokesperson, yesterday's appearance before NAB was in a relation to a call-up notice for the verification of the complaint, yet an arrest was made. Islamabad High Court's recent judgment against NAB's violation of the country’s law and a violation of NAB's own rules has been committed, said the spokesperson.