LAHORE: PMLN President and National Assembly Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif while presenting crucial testimony concerning the Chiniot Mines at the NAB Court, has said that the agreement done in 2007 was in violation of the law.
During the proceedings of the NAB court in the money laundering case, Shehbaz came to the rostrum, and thanked the court for issuing orders regarding his medical needs. He requested for 3 minutes to present his case because he wanted to personally present important details regarding the Chiniot Mines. He said that the contract was awarded without any bidding to an American citizen who was the brother of the Pervez Musharraf’s secretary. He said that he exposed these violations, not NAB.
Shehbaz said the he stood up against political and nonpolitical pressure to courageously cancel the corrupt contract which was being forcibly pushed through. He said NAB did not take any action against the concerned minister but had now filed a reference. He said that he doesn’t claim to being a saint but he surely had shed sweat and blood for the country and stopped an open attempt at robbing national treasure.
The PMLN President said Arshad Waheed had 80 percent shares in the 2007 contract while the province of Punjab only had 20 percent. He said he took action against this over which Arshad moved the High Court. The High Court questioned as to how Punjab Government’s assets were transferred to an individual.
He told the court that the Chiniot mineral reserves were estimated at over $ 4 billion dollars. He said the current value of the reserves is $ 640 billion dollars. He said work on the first phase was underway. He prayed that his actions would lead to the reserves being handed back to Punjab that would lead to annulment of of its debts and an end to poverty in the province. In 2010, a court order blocked the way of massive robbery on the nation’s resources, he said.
The former Chief Minister Punjab said had he any mala fide intention, he could have benefited immensely from this. He pointed out that he told NAB to register a case in this regard, but NAB refused saying because the court had already prevented the attempted contract, there was no need for a reference. But after 13 years, the NAB had eaten its own words and file a case out of nowhere.
Shehbaz said that presently valued national assets were gifted to an American. He stressed that he got the $ 640 billion of tye nation back by cancelling the contract in 2008 and then awarding it in accordance with the law, not NAB.
