Di Pakistan, PM Pun Kena Tangkap Ooo....

Di sana Mahkamah yang berkuasa
Tapi di negara ini orang politik yang berkuasa

Pakistan top court orders PM arrest

Supreme Court issues arrest order in case related to rental power agreements when PM Ashraf was a cabinet member. Last Modified: 15 Jan 2013 12:03 Raja Pervez Ashraf was the federal minister for water and power when he is alleged to have taken kickbacks

The Pakistani Supreme Court has ordered the arrest of Raja Pervez Ashraf, the country's prime minister, in connection with a corruption case, officials say.

The court ordered the arrest of PM Ashraf on Tuesday morning, in relation to a case relating to contracts for the purchase of rental power plants by the federal government when Ashraf was the federal minister for water and power.

The Prime Minister, in his capacity as minister for water and power "violated the principle of transparency, therefore, [his] involvement in getting financial benefits out of the same by indulging in corruption and corrupt practices cannot be overruled", the order said.

The Supreme Court ordered the arrest of 16 people, including the prime minister, and directed authorities to present Ashraf in court on Thursday, Aamir Abbas, a lawyer for the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), said.

"The chief justice ordered that all concerned, regardless of their rank, who have been booked in the case be arrested and if someone leaves the country, then chairman of [anti-corruption watchdog] NAB will be held responsible along with his investigating team," Abbas said.

Fawad Chaudhry, an advisor to the PM, condemned the court's order, calling it "unconstitutional".

Asif Ali Zardari, the Pakistani president and co-chairman of Ashraf's Pakistan People's Party (PPP), called a meeting of all parties of the ruling coalition in Karachi on Wednesday in the wake of the announcement.

"[Raja Pervez Ashraf] was the power and electricity minister and during that time he is said to have embezzled millions of dollars, the case was pending at the Supreme Court and the court therefore decided that the PM should be arrested immediately," reported Al Jazeera's Kamal Hyder in Islamabad. 

"There were serious accusations that the PM was directly involved as minister in siphoning off millions of dollars."

Arrest celebrated by protesters

The decision has come as Tahir-ul-Qadri, a populist cleric, demanded the resignation of the government in protests attended by thousands of followers in the capital Islamabad. His supporters welcomed the news, celebrating at their sit-in protest outside the parliament building.

Imran Khan, the leader of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, also announced that his party would call for nationwide protests if a caretaker government was not announced within eight days.

Pakistan's benchmark Karachi Stock Exchange index fell by nearly three percent after the news of the court order, highlighting investor anxiety over political uncertainty.

Yousuf Raza Gilani, the country's last prime minister, was dismissed by the Supreme Court in April last year after being found guilty of committing contempt of court by refusing to send a letter to Swiss authorities related to corruption investigations against President Zardari. - sumber