“Pandora Paper,” a new investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) into international finance and tax havens that was previously unveiled, has finally been made public.
Now, what the Pandora papers are?
The Pandora Papers are a mysterious collection of documents.”
Over 600 journalists from 150 media outlets in 117 countries have collaborated on the Pandora Papers investigation, which is the world’s largest-ever journalistic collaboration in history.
Based on a leak of confidential records from 14 offshore service providers, the investigation has been launched. These companies provide professional services to wealthy individuals and corporations seeking to incorporate shell companies, trusts, foundations, and other entities in a tax haven with low- or no income tax. Owners can use the entities to keep their identities hidden from the general public and, in some cases, from regulators as well. Frequently, the service providers assist them in opening bank accounts in countries with permissive financial regulations.
In the report, nearly 700 Pakistanis are named, including Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin, PPP leader Sharjeel Memon, PMLN Senator Ishaq Dar’s son Ali Dar, Punjab provincial minister Aleem Khan, PTI Senator Faisal Vajda, and PML-Q Leader and Federal Minister for Water Resources Monis Elahi, according to media reports.
In addition, retired government officials, past and current bureaucrats, businesspeople, including Shoaib Ahmed Sheikh, the owner of Axact, are listed in the study, which is available online.
The identities of Finance Minister Tarin’s family, as well as the son of Prime Minister Imran’s former adviser for finance and revenue, Waqar Masood Khan, are also included in the released records. A key PTI contributor, Arif Naqvi, who is currently facing fraud charges in the United States, was also shown to have had offshore activities, according to the data.
The discovery prompted Prime Minister Imran Khan to promise that he will investigate all of the Pakistanis who had been named in the Pandora Papers, adding that “if any misconduct is proved, we would take necessary measures.”
We appreciate the release of the Pandora Papers, which have shown the ill-gotten riches of elites, which have been acquired via tax evasion and corruption and then laundered out to financial “havens.” “According to the UN Secretary-Panel General’s FACTI, there is a staggering $7 trillion in stolen assets stashed primarily in offshore tax havens,” he tweeted on his official Twitter account.
The UN Secretary-General called on the international community to tackle this grave injustice in the same manner as the climate change problem.
The finance minister of the government that sought to root out corruption has been named in the Pandora papers, as have prominent generals and other politicians who were also implicated. In addition to Ali Dar, Faisal Vadwa, Khusro Bakhtiar, Aleem Khan, and Monis Elahi are among those who have appeared in the movie.
The so-called “Pandora Papers” investigation, which has involved approximately 600 journalists from media outlets such as The Washington Post, the BBC, and The Guardian, is based on the leak of approximately 11.9 million documents from 14 financial services companies around the world, which was first reported by the Financial Times.
Umar Cheema and Fakhar Durrani of The News International, both investigative journalists based in Pakistan, were involved in the investigation.
A vast trove of documents recently analyzed by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists includes current and former leaders who are accused of everything from corruption to money laundering and international tax avoidance.
Before the publication of the ‘Pandora Papers,’ Dr. Shahbaz Gill, Dr. Imran Khan’s special assistant on political communication, stated that the prime minister did not have an offshore company. Pakistanis were eagerly awaiting the publication of the financial investigation known as the ‘Pandora Papers.’
Gill, speaking to a crowd in Faisalabad, stressed that if any other member of the government is found to have hidden offshore assets, they will be held responsible for their actions as well. Then he added, “Everyone has to dig their own grave.”
Fortunately, Prime Minister followed through on his promises, and his name did not appear in Pandora’s papers! I hope that now that the truth has been revealed by these papers, our Prime Minister will reflect on the filtration process of his team and will look into the conduct of other members of his party as well as other undeserving and corrupt individuals.
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists claims that the Pandora Papers is the most comprehensive exposé of financial secrecy they have ever published, even larger than its predecessor, the explosive Panama Papers, which raised alarms around the world.
Author is a Lahore College for Women University graduate. She writes with zeal and believes that there is nothing greater than words to express herself.