Old hat?
It may be old news, but one that reflects staggering official incompetence. The original NABBER, as designated in the Mush era, signed an an asset recovery agreement with Broadsheet, an Isle of Mann company, way back in 2000. The company was supposed to help Pakistan recover stolen wealth from abroad. In fact, the agreement was to trace, locate & recover. So far so good.
But here’s the best part: Broadsheet had been in existence for 40 days and had a capital stock of £200, yes two hundred pounds only! The agreement was that NAB would only pay 20% of any recovery made by Broadsheet. As it transpired, the Government of Pakistan paid them $1.5 million out of the $7.5 million paid by ex-Navy Chief Admiral Mansur ul Haq as part of his plea bargain. The government went on to rescind the agreement in 2003, Broadsheet has now sued the government, and the matter has gone to the International Arbitration Council. For an explanation of this monumental bungling, please see the next item.
How it all began
Once there was a king who wanted to go on shikar. He called the royal weather forecaster and asked for the weather forecast. The weatherman said no chance of rain. So the king went hunting. On the way he met a farmer on his donkey. The farmer said, “Your Majesty, please return to the palace because it’s about to rain”. The king said: “the palace meteorologist is an educated, experienced professional, whom I pay high wages. He gave me a different forecast. He says no rain, so I’ll carry on”. But a short time later a torrential rain began. The King was soaked, and furious, he returned to the palace and sacked the professional. Then he summoned the farmer and offered him the job of royal forecaster. The farmer said, “Your Majesty, I don’t know anything about forecasting. I get my information from my donkey. If I see my donkey’s ears drooping, it means that it will rain.”
So the king hired the donkey.
And thus began the practice of hiring dumb asses to work in the government and occupy its highest positions. This practice continues to date.