Pakistan ranks 140th in Corruption Perception Index

The TI report, issued from Berlin, is a charge sheet against both the present Shehbaz Sharif-led PDM government and the last Imran Khan government, as Pakistan’s CPI score dropped to the lowest since 2012. The 2022 CPI score of Pakistan is 27 as against 28 in 2021. Pakistan’s rank, however, remained at 140 out of the total 180 countries assessed by the TI in its 2022 report, reports The News International.

Surveys of different international bodies, which provide data to the TI for its report, show that the data evaluated in case of Pakistan covers both the governments of the PDM and PTI.

Ina  separate press release TI said: " Pakistan too has continued its statistically significant downward trend, this year hitting its lowest score since 2012 at just 27 points amidst ongoing political turmoil."

'Prime Minister Imran Khan came to power promising to tackle rampant corruption and promote social and economic reforms, but little has been accomplished on any of these fronts since he took the reins in 2018," read the statement.

"After he was ousted in a no confidence vote this April, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) disqualified him from running for office for another five years and filed a plea in session court for criminal proceedings over allegations he failed to declare gifts and profits he made from selling them during his tenure," read the press release.

"Khan has begun a separate court case against the ECP, challenging the ECP’s jurisdiction over candidate qualification," it said.

"While awaiting the verdicts from these two cases, it’s most important that the new government does not allow such political scandals to derail comprehensive anti-corruption efforts. It’s time for concrete action with a holistic and effective anti-corruption plan that addresses illicit financial flows and introduces safeguards for civic space," it said.