Governor recommends Sharifs say ‘sorry’

Also says that Imran Khan’s criticism should not be taken seriously.

LAHORE:

Governor Sardar Latif Khan Khosa has demanded that the Sharif brothers apologise for instituting false cases against PPP leaders. After President Zardari had served out his term, he said, the PPP would file an application in court seeking the quashment of all cases against him.

Addressing a press conference at the Governor’s House, Khosa said the Rawalpindi Accountability Court (AC) on July 30 absolved all accused in the Societe Generale Surveillance (SGS) reference. He said the Sharif brothers had appointed Saiful Rehman to the Ihtesab Cell which instituted false cases against PPP leaders.

Khosa said that there was need for legislation against those who institute false cases. He said that corruption cases should not be used to malign politicians until they are decided.

He said that in May 2006, when Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif signed the Charter of Democracy (CoD) Sharif had agreed that all politically motivated cases including SGS and ARY references should be abolished. He said that in November 2007, the then cabinet had sanctioned the NRO and set aside all political cases.

He said that in 2009 when the court struck down the NRO, it had allowed the government to get the NRO endorsed by the parliament but the PPP had preferred to contest the cases in the courts.

The governor said the federal government was committed not to allow democracy to be derailed.

Regarding the Supreme Court’s direction on OSD Sohail Ahmad, he said, the court had only urged the executive to utilise the services of the officer.

He said that PPP had always respected the judiciary. He said that PTI chief Imran Khan was new to politics and his criticism should not be taken seriously.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 1^st, 2011.