Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to appoint the former head of Transparency International (TI) Pakistan Chapter Adil Gilani as the Ambassador to Serbia.

It seems that the Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is rewarding him for making bogus reports in favour of the PML(N) led government during last three and half years. Almost all the reports issued by Transparency International Pakistan during the regime of current government showed that Nawaz Sharif not only controlled corruption but also introduced good governance in Pakistan. It is also worth mentioning here that Adil Gillani is the father of Fawad Gilani, who heads up USAID’s anti corruption hotline.

Adil Gilani is a controversial person and as the Chairman of Transparency International he was known as a blackmailer who gave a clean chit to only those who he liked. Now he may cause more humiliation for Pakistan globally as the government is sending him on the important position of Ambassador where he will be interacting with all other diplomats of the world.

It is high time the government should clean up the Foreign Office from those elements who do not only earn a bad name for the country but also become hurdles in depicting a good image of the country abroad, especially in such a sensitive time when the country is being pushed towards isolation by the concentrated efforts of her rivals.

The dubious role of Syed Adil Gillani and his fraudulent Transparency International Pakistan is nothing but the promotion of personal agendas and political motives. The controversial Gillani left no stone unturned to utilise the platform of Transparency International Pakistan for his personal gains as well as for his affiliates. Under the disguise of transparency, he is notorious for hijacking government offices and is exercising blatant and wholesale corruption as per various published media reports.

This can be deduced from the multi-billion-rupee land scam related to the National Insurance Company Limited in which the Transparency International chief was probed by FIA for his alleged involvement in the scam, massive levels of fraud in KDA and privatisation of KPT. It is also commonly heard, albeit without proof, that the organisations that did not agree to Gillani’s demands are often defamed and face charges of corruption and misuse of funds by the TI.

Naturally, as the result of the above precedents, the nation cannot expect integrity and objectivity from Adil Gilani, as he remained an opaque person in the transparency industry. It is a matter of grave concern that corruption has deeply permeated in every strata of the society.

Allegations leveled by Transparency International without any factual information with malafide and ulterior motives adversely affect the country’s image in the international arena. Initiatives taken by Transparency International are appreciated worldwide and are examples of good governance.

However, it seems that the Pakistani chapter of Transparency International has fallen to the wrong hands of Gillani, who has sworn to use the platform of TI to make personal gains or settle vendettas.