The Pakistan President refused to put his signature on the Accountability (Amendment) bill, saying that he was not informed about the bill before placing it before Parliament.
Pakistan President Arif Alvi Saturday returned the National Accountability (Amendment) Bill, saying that the law needed to be reconsidered because it went against the spirit of Islamic jurisprudence.
He also argued that his office should have been informed about this legislative proposal before placing the bill before Parliament – which, he said was his reason for refusing to sign the law.
(Article 46 of the Pakistan Constitution provides that the Prime Minister shall keep the President informed on all legislative proposals the government intends to bring before Parliament.)
The law was among the first laws introduced by the present government after it assumed office on 11 April.
Further, the Pakistan President observed that the amendments had been passed by Parliament in haste and without due diligence, arguing for the need to involve civil society in the making of the important legislation.
The new law seeks to shift the burden of proof to the persecution, President Alvi said, arguing that it would make it impossible for the prosecution to prove cases of corruption and misuse of official authority by the state persons and would bury the process of accountability in Pakistan.
President Arif Alvi has been among the founding members of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf or PTI. Over the years, and during the past few tumultuous months in particular, he has been seen as Khan’s closest ally.
