Govt’s hands tied due to IMF agreement: Maryam

Says prepared to contest upcoming polls in Punjab, K-P, on NA seats

BHAWALPUR:

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz on Thursday said that the government’s hands were tied regarding inflation due to Pakistan’s agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

“Those who ruled the country for four years are responsible for the problems of the people,” Maryam said while addressing a news conference here.

She was accompanied by Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah as well as other PML-N leaders, including Saud Majeed.

Maryam said that her party would clean sweep upcoming elections by defeating the political opponents.

“The PML-N is fully prepared to contest the upcoming elections in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa as well as on the National Assembly seats,” Maryam said. "The PML-N is the largest political party of the county which will clean sweep the upcoming elections by defeating Imran Khan and his allies."

The PML-N senior vice president said there was no truth in propaganda of political victimisation, adding that the person should be punished and brought to justice who had committed guilt and crime.

"We are not in favour of political victimisation and it is clear that there is no truth in propaganda of political victimisation raised by our political rivals," she said.

She said that political rivals had been making false and baseless propaganda that former prime minister and PML-N leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had some difference with the party's leadership.

"The former prime minister, Abbasi, is like my brother and is our companion," she said, adding that Abbasi was like a member of the Sharif family.

She said that the PML-N had made all arrangements to contest the upcoming elections.

On Peshawar mosque blast, she raised the question that why the borders with a neighbouring country were opened by the previous regime. "Who opened borders for terrorists," she asked.

Maryam said that previous regime was responsible for the woes, problems and difficulties being faced by the masses. "Wrong financial policies introduced by Imran Khan-led government caused financial constraints for people of the country," she said.

She strongly condemned the Pehswar explosion in which innocent lives of police personnel were lost. She lamented that the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) had no building for an office in Peshawar despite the fact that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had remained in power in K-P for 10 years.

The PML-N senior vice president said that huge funds were provided to the PTI government in K-P to combat terrorism and ensure rule of law, but the police could not be equipped with modern weapons and equipment.

"The PTI-led K-P government could not even establish a forensic laboratory as still they avail forensic laboratory of the Punjab government," she added.

She said that she was in favour of protection of rights of the journalists' community. She, however, said that some wrong persons in the guise of so-called-journalists had been airing false and baseless propaganda against the government. She said that on the direction of the central leadership, she had launched the party’s campaign from Bahawalpur.

(With input from APP)