Nawaz standing between people and ideal Pakistan: Imran

PTI chief says he is struggling against PM as he has turned country a worse place

NOWSHERA: PTI chief Imran Khan has said there is no personal enmity between him and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and he is only struggling against the premier as he is standing between the nation and an ideal Pakistan, as envisioned by the Quaid-e-Azam and Allama Iqbal.

“I came to politics to make the dreams of the Quaid and Iqbal come true. But Nawaz Sharif is standing in the way of this dream of a better Pakistan. I clarify that I don’t have personal enmity with Nawaz, but he has made the country a worse place,” Imran on Friday.

The PTI chief was addressing a rally in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s Nowshera district -- the constituency of Chief Minister Pervez Khattak.

Giving examples from his personal life, Khan said he always dreamt big and then worked hard to make that dream come true.

“I dreamt of making Pakistan a welfare state and dreamt to carve a society where no-one may need Zakat like the erstwhile state of Madina,” he said, adding: “If China can pull 50 million people out of poverty, why can’t we eradicate the cancer of corruption,” he said.



He lamented that the people of Pakistan were no longer respected internationally. Citing example of former president Ayub Khan’s visit to the US, he said the then US president had himself received Ayub at the airport.

“I do not agree with Ayub Khan’s way of politics but I want you to see how he was respected in the US. But now Nawaz Sharif has to request for a meeting with the US president and takes dictation on papers,” he said.

The PTI chief said his aim was to make Pakistan a country whose green passport was respected in the world, adding that the country was not respected as it relied on foreign loans and was not self-sufficient.

“We aren't self-sufficient because of corruption. When a nation's money is laundered abroad, it has to take loans from lenders. The IMF has ordered [Finance Minister] Ishaq Dar to impose further taxes worth Rs40 billion on common people. Inflation will further go up and so will poverty,” he added.

On the occasion, Khan appreciated the K-P chief minister for the billion-tree project and a project for poor street children.

Addressing the gathering, PTI’s central leader Asad Umar said the entire country was demanding of their respective provincial governments to imitate the K-P model of reforms in the areas of health, police and local government.



“We have empowered the local representatives of the province and Sindh mayor has cited more than ten times that the K-P has empowered local representatives for the first time in country’s history,” he said.

Sheikh Rashid Ahmad of the Awami Muslim League, who also addressed the gathering, called the PM a product of General Headquarters [GHQ].  “Nawaz is the production of Gate No 4 of the GHQ and he has always bowed before military dictations,” he claimed.