Flawed decisions taken by previous govts have led to a compromise on the nation’s self-reliance & independence: Sirajul Haq
KHUSHAB, Sep 26 (SABAH): Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Siraj-ul-Haq has said that the flawed decisions taken by previous governments have led to a compromise on the nation’s self-reliance and independence.
This, Sirajul Haq added while talking to journalists on Tuesday, resulted in the country becoming nothing less than a pawn of lending agencies and international powers, vowing to persist in the struggle to safeguard the rights and independence of our people.
He earlier led the funeral prayer for JI local leader Khaliq Dad Bhatti and addressed the gathering.
The JI chief strongly condemned the desecration of the Holy Quran in the Netherlands and called upon the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the leaders of the Islamic world to take a resolute stance against such incidents, one that truly represents the sentiments of the Ummah.
He also voiced his opposition to the moves of Muslim nations to recognize Israel, warning that such decisions would undermine the Palestinian cause. He emphasized that the Pakistani nation would vehemently oppose any efforts by Islamabad to acknowledge Israel.
Sirajul Haq called upon the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to promptly announce the date for the national elections. He said the ECP failed to conduct the polls within the stipulated 90 days following the dissolution of the assemblies, hence, it also fell short of meeting the constitutional requirements. Despite that, he added, the JI believed, at least now, the ECP should remove ambiguity and announce the precise date for the general election. The transparent conduct of the elections would serve as a genuine test of the ECP’s credibility, he argued. The rigged polls like those held in the past, he said, would be tantamount to wasting billions of rupees from the national exchequer as nobody would accept the outcomes. Such elections, he added, would create further instability.
He pointed out that both the PPP and PML-N governments had entered into expensive agreements with IPPs, placing a heavy burden on the public. The PTI’s former government, he said, had continued these agreements, sharing responsibility with the previous ruling parties. He demanded a reduction in electricity tariffs, emphasizing that caretaker governments were not authorized to raise tariffs. The caretakers, he said, must shift their focus from sending high bills to consumers towards addressing the billions lost due to line losses and power theft.
Sirajul Haq said the JI concluded the sit-ins in front of the Peshawar, Lahore and Quetta governor houses, reaffirming the party’s commitment to continue its struggle until the rights of the people were duly addressed. The protests were part of the JI’s ongoing campaign against inflation, he added. The JI, he said, would soon stage a sit-in in front of the Karachi Governor House.