Imran blames interim govt for not ensuring transparency in 2013 elections

PTI chief hopes Adiala Jail will be filled by criminals who have looted the country

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Thursday blamed the care-taker government of 2013 for not ensuring transparency in the election process, Express News reported.

Addressing the media after central executive committee meeting in Islamabad, Imran reiterated that the responsibility to hold free and fair elections lied with the interim government. He said the previous set-up had failed as over 20 political parties alleged rigging in the general elections 2013.

Explaining the care-taker setup, the PTI chief pointed out that the only reason it existed in Pakistan was to ensure elections were clean. There is no interim government abroad, he said. “We applied it after massive rigging ensued in the elections of 1977.”

The previous election was an outcome of Charter of Democracy (COD) where certain parties agreed among each other to elected their own ‘umpires’, he said. “The umpire should be neutral.”

Adiala jail?

Referring to the statements on Adiala Jail and its cleaning made by ousted premier Nawaz Sharif, Imran hope the jail would be filled by criminals who have looted the country. “It is sad that the powerful and the weak are treated differently. I am not surprised on Adiala Jail is being cleaned up. An accused busted for a petty crime will be housed in a littered jail while those who have stolen billions will get clean jails.”

Budget 2018-19

Imran said he was surprised at the government’s decision to announce annual budget only 45 days before their tenure ends. He added that Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervez Khattak will not announce provincial budget due to the short period before their term ends.

Terming Nawaz Sharif a ‘mafia’, the PTI chairman accused Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif of operating multiple bank accounts.

FATA merger

The PTI chief asserted that the wide political void in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) could only be removed by the bringing tribal people into national mainstreamed fold. He warned that if the grievances of the people of Fata were not addressed, ‘enemies’ can easily exploit them. “The protests by tribesmen is justified,” he said.

Blaming Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai and Jamiat Ulema-e Islam-Fazlur Rehman chief Fazlur Rehman for oppressing the people of Fata, Imran added that the PTI is determined to work for the tribal areas.