Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry schooled media on the PTI foreign funding case. The Federal Minister did this while defending PM Khan against accusations of being involved in the foreign funding case.
Fawad Chaudhry then said the case is against PTI, and not PM Khan as the media and Opposition frequently claim.
Read more: PTI’s foreign funding case: A crisis in making?
The recent bout of accusations against PM Khan comes as PTI refuses to consult with the Opposition leader, Shehbaz Sharif, for the appointment of NAB Chairman.
Earlier, the government amended Section 6 of the Ordinance of 1999. As per the amendment, the president will appoint the NAB chairman in consultation with the prime minister and the leader of the opposition.
In case, there is no consensus, a parliamentary committee comprising of equal representation from the treasury and the opposition benches will refer the matter.
During that time, the incumbent NAB Chairman, i.e. Justice Javed Iqbal will continue performing duties.
Read more: PTI govt paves way for NAB chairman Javed Iqbal
While the constitution demands consultation with the Opposition, Fawad Chaudhry said that the government will not consult Shahbaz Sharif over the appointment of NAB’s next chairman.
Needless to say, this sparked Opposition backlash. Important to note, PTI maintains that it will consult with the Opposition which comprises of different political parties. However, it is against consulting with PML-N leader Shahbaz Sharif.
Consulting Shahbaz Sharif is conflict of interest: Fawad Chaudhry
According to Fawad Chaudhry, consulting Shahbaz Sharif on the appointment of NAB Chairman is conflict of interest.
To clarify, Fawad Chaudhry stated that NAB filed a reference of more than Rs 7 billion on Shahbaz Sharif. Therefore, consulting with him over the matter is akin to asking a suspect who their interrogating officer should be.
“Asking Shahbaz Sharif who the next NAB Chairman will be is the biggest example of conflict of interest,” Fawad Chaudhry said.
Read more: PTI & PML-N grapple over Shahbaz Sharif’s “acquittal”
On this note, the journalist hit back saying that if this is the case, then PM Khan also cannot appoint the Chief of Election Commission as there are charges against him in the foreign funding case.
“For this, you need to broaden your understanding,” Fawad Chaudhry retorted. He then clarified that the case is against PTI, not PM Khan.
نئی نئی اینکر کی نو بال پر
فواد چوہدری کا چھکا۔؛😎
pic.twitter.com/umx8W74ixo— S͜͡Yᗴᗪ B͜͡ᑌKᕼᗩᖇI (@LalBukhari) October 7, 2021
Moreover, Fawad Chaudhry highlighted the difference between Shahbaz Sharif’s case and PTI’s case by saying that the latter is based on civil proceedings, not criminal proceedings.
On a separate occasion, PTI’s Maleeka Bukhari also explained that the case is not of foreign funding, but in fact of prohibited funding. Moreover, PTI provided complete details of its donors whereas Shahbaz Sharif failed to do so.
ملیکہ بخاری نے پڑھے لکھے انداز میں بتا دیا کے الیکشن کمیشن میں تحریک انصاف پر ممنوعہ فنڈنگ کا کیس ہے فارن فنڈنگ کا نہیں
دوسری طرف عظمی بخاری کی سنجیدگی کا اندازہ لگائیں جھوٹ پکڑے جانے پر شرمندہ نہیں ہو رہی ڈھیٹ بن کر موبائیل پر گیم کھیلنے میں لگی ہے@MalBokhari pic.twitter.com/m2fxdc2Jch
— Ambreen PTI (@AmbreenPTI1) October 7, 2021