The revolving door

The past week has been full of surprises emanating from the political arena, and the biggest of them all was the ‘resignation’ of Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Accountability and Interior tsar,  Barrister Shahzad Akbar. He was known for conducting long and fiery press conferences against PM Khan’s political opponents and other opposition leaders belonging to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), including Leader of the Opposition, Shehbaz Sharif, and PPP President, Asif Ali Zardari, in which he vilified them for their alleged money laundering, corruption and other financial crimes.

When he first emerged as a major player on the political scene, Akbar used to conduct weekly press conferences. However, the frequency of these was reduced with the passage of time.For weeks prior to his leaving office, Opposition parties had been claiming that he would be sacked. And on Monday, January 24, Akbar announced he had resigned from his post as Adviser to the Prime Minister on Accountability and the Interior, but would remain associated with the PTI. According to sources privy to this development, the Accountability tsar was informed that PM Khan was not happy with him because there had been practically no convictions, despite tall claims made by him during meetings between him and the premier before and after he was made SAPM in August 2018, and later elevated to the position of Adviser on Accountability and the Interior.

“The Principal Secretary informed Akbar that his services were no longer required, after which he tendered his resignation. In fact, he was asked to resign,” said a source, and multiple others in the know confirmed as much to Bol News. Sources also quoted PM Khan as saying while accepting his resignation, “Akbar was not able to deliver.”

Akbar, who was previously serving as deputy prosecutor for the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), had been noticed by Imran Khan when he played a key role in the Panama Papers-related money laundering cases in which PML-N supremo and former premier Nawaz Sharif was convicted.

“Nawaz Sharif’s conviction made the PM believe that Akbar was the right man for the job — a job on which Khan had built his entire narrative, ie. that he would hold every corrupt politician accountable and bring the looted money back to Pakistan,” said a source. Thereafter, Akbar rose to become one of the most powerful members of Khan’s cabinet, holding three offices at the same time.

The premier had tasked Akbar with the recovery of the funds looted from the nation, and holding those politicians responsible for the larceny accountable. However, even after more than three years Akbar failed miserably in meeting either of these goals.  Neither was the looted money retrieved, nor was any alleged corrupt politician convicted during the  Shahzad Akbar-led accountability drive.

Within a month after coming into power, the PTI government had established a task force to retrieve all the money allegedly plundered from Pakistan and stashed abroad.

“This force was assigned to retrieve the $200 billion reportedly stolen from Pakistan and hidden in offshore bank accounts. But even after the passage of more than three-and-a-half years, the Akbar led Assets Recovery Unit (ARU) failed miserably in bringing back any money. This was one of the major reasons for his ouster,” said a source.

Other insiders disclosed that PM Khan was initially convinced by Akbar’s effective powerpoint presentations that he was the best man for the job. But with the passage of time, they maintain, Khan started realising that the Akbar-led accountability drive was tall on promises, but short on results. And his failure to to achieve the  results sought, was making the PTI look bad in the eyes of the masses as well as in political circles.

In one instance, said a source, “PM Khan became particularly upset with Akbar after he told him that his task force had managed to trace Rs. 27 billion worth of funds money-laundered by Shehbaz Sharif and his sons, but subsequently changed that figure to Rs. 25 billion and then to Rs. 16 billion.”  He added that Akbar never shared complete details with the PM, and whenever he was asked about the details, he would hand Khan a bunch of documents rather than providing any concrete answers. PM Khan also reportedly felt the PTI government had to face a measure of embarrassment with regard to the reference filed against Justice Qazi Faez Isa, as it was Akbar who headed the Asset Recovery Unit (ARU) team that collected the evidence against Justice Isa to file a reference against him.

Inside sources disclosed that apart from Akbar’s poor performance,  PM Khan also believed that he was part of a conspiracy group within PTI ranks and that he had  become too political for his position. He was seen as the main force behind the cases and investigation against erstwhile PTI leader Jahangir Khan Tareen. “His focus was on politics and other things instead of his job,” said a source, and added that former Senior Punjab Minister Abdul Aleem Khan also believes he was arrested because of Akbar.

With his fall from race, the Opposition is now baying for his blood.

Senior PML-N leader Atta Tarar said he fears Akbar  is making plans to flee the country and his name should be placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) before that happens. He maintained that if Akbar was not placed on the ECL, his party would submit an application in court in this regard.

“ARU spent billions of rupees illegally. A JIT should be formed against Akbar, who personally amassed assets worth billions of rupees,” Tarrar alleged, adding that before becoming an adviser Akbar had no property in Lahore, but now owns a farmhouse there. He also claimed that he acquired properties and other assets and put them in his wife’s name in Spain.

“We will make him accountable for the money he made from the ARU,” said Tarar, asking why he had not instituted any cases against the sugar, flour and medicine mafias.