Accountability must for corruption-free Pakistan, says Siraj

JI chief calls OIC a dead horse that can’t be relied upon

LAHORE: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Sirajul Haq said on Friday that for Pakistan to become a corruption-free state, accounts of the governments of Nawaz Sharif, Pervez Musharraf and Asif Ali Zardari must be audited.

“Accountability should start from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif,” Haq told reporters at the Allama Iqbal International Airport on his return from Saudi Arabia after performing an umrah.



He said up to 6,000 corrupt people may have to be “sacrificed” to achieve a corruption-free Pakistan. Corrupt people should not be allowed to escape without consideration for whether they were from the ruling party or the opposition, he said.

“Accountability without discrimination is needed before the next elections failing which the coterie of the corrupt will return to power,” the JI chief said. He called for making the Election Commission stronger and independent.

He said the JI had begun a campaign against corruption a few months ago and now everyone was calling for a corruption-free Pakistan. He said that on July 24, the party would hold a walk against corruption in Rawalpindi.

Haq appealed to the federal and the provincial governments to extend immediate help to the rain-affected people in Chitral. He said the Muslim world was saddened by the recent terrorist attacks in Madina and other Saudi cities. The attacks, he said, came as a shock to every Muslim. He said he hoped that the Saudi government would crush the terrorists on the holy land.



He said protecting the Haramain Sharifain was the responsibility of the entire Muslim world. He urged the Muslims to unite and adopt a joint strategy.

Calling the Organisation of Islamic Conference a dead horse, Haq said the OIC could not be relied upon. He said it was the responsibility of Muslim rulers to deal with hostile forces in their countries and restore peace.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 9^th, 2016.