ISLAMABAD: The government on Wednesday clarified its stance over the appointment of the new chief of the country’s anti-graft body (NAB), saying it would not consult the leader of the opposition, calling on him to resign given pending corruption cases against him.

The comments came during a news conference in Islamabad by Pakistan’s information minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain and law minister Farogh Naseem who said the top opposition leader in the country, Shehbaz Sharif, would have no say in the NAB appointment.

Previously, local media quoted Naseem as saying Prime Minister Imran Khan would consult Sharif over the issue, though he also told a television talk show there was an obvious “conflict of interest” since Sharif was himself facing corruption cases and being investigated by NAB.

Media reports also quoted the law minister as saying that the government had considered the option of not consulting the opposition leader but thought that the appointment of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chief would then be described as one-sided by its detractors.

“If Shahbaz Sharif has a modicum of shame, he should resign as opposition leader himself,” the information minister told the media, ruling out an possibility of a consultation and saying it would amount to allowing a “thief to choose his investigating officer.”

The two ministers said they were on the same page over the matter.

Naseem said it was the president who would appoint the NAB chairman, and the prime minister would not be holding consultations. He said the process could require the government to set up a parliamentary committee to decide the issue.

Pakistan’s opposition leaders have frequently described the corruption references against them as politically motivated.

The leader of the opposition in the National Assembly said last month a court in the United Kingdom had unfrozen his family’s bank accounts despite all corruption allegations levelled against him by the government. He added that the Pakistani authorities had so far also failed to prove any charges against him.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has promised across-the-board accountability against public office holders who he says siphoned off money as he prepared for the last general elections.

Khan swept to power in 2018 promising to root out corruption.