Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan on Sunday called for immediate elections, saying that the present government was taking the country to the verge of economic collapse.
In an interview with Dr. Moeed Pirzada on TV channel 92News, the former prime minister said he feared that if his party again came to power, it would be compelled to make a compromise on the future and security of the country.
Khan said the current rulers tried to abolish the NAB and the FIA to save their theft. Referring to corruption cases being faced by Premier Shehbaz Sharif, he said, “An accused cannot become a judge.”
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“Now they will destroy all institutions of the country, except judiciary, to get NRO.” National Reconciliation Ordinance was a concession given by former president Gen. Pervez Musharraf to two former prime ministers, Benazir Bhutto, and Nawaz Sharif.
Imran Khan said the PMLN-led coalition government had no plan to rid the country of economic crisis. “In these circumstances, I fear that those who will bail us out will get those things done by us that will destroy future and security of the country.”
He said the present government had come to power only to close down their corruption cases, not to power to improve the crippling economy and reduce inflation.
“If you have no capability to run the country, then why did you remove the PTI government? In our period, economy was taking off as proved by Pakistan Economic Survey data, but they [present rulers] have destabilised the government.”
Talking about his oil deal with Russia, Khan said India and Sri Lanka are buying oil from Russia, why the current government couldn’t make a deal in two months.
The PTI Chairman said he enjoyed cordial ties with former US President Donald Trump, but Joe Biden’s administration was “stuck in dealing with matters related to Afghanistan,” so it couldn’t engage Pakistan. “These boot-polishers [current rulers] act like the servants of the US. Did they thank Pakistan for 80,000 casualties or 400 drone attacks? They asked us to do more.”
Talking about the new budget for the fiscal year 2022-23, he said: “This budget seems to be not for a period of a year or so, but for one or two months. It means they [rulers] are making plans to get their cases closed down, and by appointing their like-minded officers on top positions, they will try to rig the next elections,” he claimed.
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Khan said his party was going to the Supreme Court (SC) to challenge the abolition of laws relating to NAB, electronic voting machines, and overseas Pakistanis’ right to vote.
Answering a question about the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Khan said that the projects “had to be halted because of the coronavirus pandemic.”
Discussing the PTI’s plan of another long march, Khan said: “First we will get permission from the SC and then stage the long march again. Will all institutions, which claimed to be democratic, give us a basic right of protest?” he asked.