Pakistani gov’t places former president on no-fly list

By Aamir Latif

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistani government on Thursday announced it was going to place the name of former President Asif Ali Zardari on a no-fly list for his alleged involvement in corruption and money laundering.

Speaking to reporters, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said a Cabinet meeting, headed by Prime Minister Imran Khan approved to place the names of 172 politicians and bureaucrats facing corruption and money laundering charges on the Exit Control List.

This means, the suspects will not be allowed to travel abroad until the completion of ongoing investigations against them.

The suspects also include, Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah and Faryal Talpur, a sister of Zardari, who is known as “ Ms Everything” in southern Sindh province where former president’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is ruling for the record third time in a row.

The latest move, which is part of the government’s ongoing controversial anti-corruption campaign, comes days after the country’s three-time Premier Nawaz Sharif was sentenced to seven-year in prison in a corruption case.

The opposition accuses the government of launching a “one-sided” campaign and turning a blind eye to its own ministers, including a sister of the prime minister, who are facing different inquiries for corruption and hiding assets.

The government has already filed a reference against embattled Zardari to seek his disqualification for allegedly hiding foreign assets.

Zardari was elected as a member of the lower house -- the National Assembly -- from his hometown Nawabshah of southern Sindh province in the last general elections.

The corruption-tainted former president is also facing inquiry in a money-laundering scam, which involves transactions of billions of rupees through fake accounts.

The PPP, for its part, rebutted the government allegations terming them “baseless” and “devoid of truth.”

The PPP, which has ruled the country four times since its inception in 1967, came third in the July elections securing 51 seats in 342-member National Assembly.

Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) stood first, while Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) of Nawaz Sharif came second with 148, and 82 seats, respectively.