Nawaz spent millions from IB fund on politics, media

Daily Times

Former prime minister and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif distributed millions of rupees of Intelligence Bureau (IB) funds among journalists and to institute cases against rival politicians, the Supreme Court was told on Monday. The court was hearing the suo motu case regarding the alleged misuse of Rs 270 million IB fund by the incumbent PPP government in 2008-09. Appearing in the court, an English daily’s reporter, Asad Kharral, submitted a fresh report regarding the misuse of public money. He told the court that the IB had provided Rs 3 million to journalist Nazir Naji who at the time was a columnist with an Urdu newspaper and also a government official in the capacity of Pakistan Academy of Letters chairman. Besides IB’s recent issue of withdrawal of Rs 270 million in 2008, Kharral’s report said it was also involved in siphoning off millions of rupees in 1998-99 (from November 1998 to October 1999) during Nawaz Sharif’s regime. He contended that millions of rupees of IB fund were not only distributed among journalists but a major chunk had been spent to institute cases against rival politicians Benazir Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari, both inside and outside the country. The report said, “According to the rules and regulations, the purpose of the secret fund is only to obtain or uncover sensitive information necessary to protect ‘national interest’ – it cannot be used for any other purpose, even emergencies or incidental expenses. All withdrawals are supposed to come under specific heads and justifications. This was not the case with this large withdrawal.” “The secret funds which IB got under different supplementary grants were supposed to be utilised for the purchase of journalists and to make comprehensive cases against the PPP’s leadership,” it further said. The objective, the report claimed, was to utilise the cash for these purposes under the umbrella of IB’s secret fund to avoid audit. This huge amount had been distributed to different persons on the special directions of the then prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, through his two close aides, the then Ehtisab Cell chairman Saifur Rehman and his principal secretary, Saeed Mehdi. On the directions of the prime minister, Mehdi met the then IB DG, Col (r) Iqbal Niazi, in Prime Minister’s Secretariat and conveyed the message of his boss (Sharif) regarding provision of Rs 3 million to the said journalist. Major (r) Farid Jadoon, who was the then personal staff officer to the IB DG, delivered the said amount (Rs 3 million) to Naji’s house. The report also stated that IB also transferred about Rs 100 million abroad though illegal channels such as Hawala/Hundi after changing Pakistani currency into foreign currency. This amount received by the IB through supplementary grants for this specific purpose on the direction of the then prime minister, whose close aide conveyed the message to the then IB chief to transfer these amounts abroad to some individuals, front men, including lawyers who prosecuted the cases against Benazir and Zardari. More than Rs 100 million were spent on the materialisation and pursuance of cases against Benazir and Zardari in Swiss courts. Millions of rupees of IB secret funds were also used for accommodation and transportation of dignitaries and their relatives.