Daily Times

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday accepted the resignation of Chairman National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Aftab Sultan.

The Chairman NAB presented the resignation to the prime minister citing personal reasons at the PM House. The prime minister appreciated the services of Aftab Sultan and lauded his honesty and uprightness.

“The prime minister appreciated the services of Aftab Sultan and lauded his honesty and uprightness. Upon his insistence, the prime minister reluctantly accepted the resignation of Sultan,” the PM Office said.

Later, while speaking during a farewell ceremony at the anti-graft watchdog’s headquarters, Sultan said he was extremely happy and satisfied that he was able to uphold his principles and not bow down to any pressure. “Throughout my life and professional career, I tried to act according to law and never compromised on my principles,” said Sultan. He added that the constitution provides solutions to all the country’s problems.

“Not following the constitution has resulted in the political and economic mess we find ourselves in. Continuity of political process and elections is essential,” said the former NAB chief.

Sultan said he cannot initiate a false case against anyone nor can he drop an established reference against someone merely on the grounds that the culprit is a relative of some big shot. The outgoing NAB chief said that he had complete faith in the young officers of the anti-corruption watchdog to uphold the principles of high moral values and the rule of law. Aftab Sultan appointed as head of the anti-graft body on July 21, 2022, for three years by the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government after Justice (r) Javed Iqbal’s tenure ended last year.

Speaking to a private TV channel, Sultan said that he had resigned from the office a few days ago. “I was asked to do certain things which were not acceptable to me.”

“I told them that I cannot continue with the conditions. My resignation has been accepted and it comes to an end on a positive note,” he said. “Prime minister expressed good wishes for me, I also have good wishes for him.”