Lahore rally: MMA puts up first electoral show

Fazl says party will take 2018 elections as a challenge

LAHORE: Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) President Maulana Fazlur Rehman has announced that all mainstream religiopolitical parties will contest upcoming general elections from the MMA’s platform.

The party will take 2018 elections as a challenge and will transform Pakistan into an independent Islamic state as per the vision of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

Addressing a public gathering at Minar-e-Pakistan on Sunday, Rehman criticised the role of foreign powers and establishment in the national politics. “The entire Muslim world is under fire for the past 15 years and now it is being attempted to instigate a war between Saudi Arabia and Iran…well thought-out strategy of the United States and the western world just to curb our freedom,” he said.

The MMA president highlighted that the United Nations and other international institution are controlling Pakistan’s politics and human rights through various agreements. “Pakistan has sacrificed thousands of lives in the war against terrorism but still failed to maintain peace,” he said.

Rehman said that Pakistan Army cannot alone bring peace in the country. “Today, everybody talks about human rights, but still thousands of sons of this nation are still missing…the establishment has forced the parliament to constitute military courts to undermine the civil and judicial system of the country…I want to question about the performance of these military courts,” he added.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman highlighted that the military action was taken against madaris Under the Nation Action Plan (NAP). “Ulema and religious scholars cooperated with armed forces just to ensure peace in the country but it is still a distant dream,” he added.

The MMA president highlighted that a law had been passed recently from the parliament that any 18-year-old adult has the right to change his or her gender as per their will. “Elections are around the corner and all parliamentarians have returned to their constituencies. At times, it has become difficult to keep the session owing due to lack of quorum. But this law has been silently approved from both upper and lower houses,” he said and added that the MMA does not accept the law and strongly condemn its passage.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 14^th, 2018.