Imran strikes conciliatory tone

PTI chairman says willing to 'talk to everyone', 'forgives' everyone for country’s sake

LAHORE:

PTI Chairman Imran Khan has announced that he forgave everyone, including those who attempted to take his life in Wazirabad last year, for the sake of the country.

Addressing the nation via video link from his Zaman Park residence on Saturday, the PTI chairman said that he was ready to talk to everyone for the betterment of the country.

Imran lauded his party workers, supporters and the nation for showing courage in difficult times after the fall of his government as a result of a regime change operation.

The deposed premier reiterated that another attack had been planned on his life and he was aware of it. “However, now I am confident that if anything happens to me, nobody can stop the journey towards real independence. The nation has awakened and will continue its struggle for real independence of the country,” he maintained.

He told his party workers to start preparations for the most important elections in the history of Pakistan. He announced kicking off election campaign in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) with the first public gathering on next Saturday.

He also warned his party leaders and workers that he would not tolerate violation of party discipline in any case. “It had been observed in the past that those who could obtain party tickets contested elections as independent candidates. Whoever tried to continue this malpractice would be expelled from the party,” he underscored.

“This time I will interview candidates and distribute party tickets as I heard that my party tickets were sold last time. I will not accept recommendation in ticket distribution and those who could not get party ticket for some reason will be accommodated in local government elections as the party has decided to hold local government elections after the Punjab Assembly polls,” he said, adding that the process of tickets distribution would be completed in a week or 10 days.

The former premier said he was expecting that the government would go for general elections since polls were being held in 60 per cent of the country as political stability was directly linked to the general elections in the country. It would also help in saving resources, he added.

Giving details of his party’s plan to pull out the country from the current economic quagmire, he said that stakeholders, including politicians, institutions and the nation, had to jointly struggle for pulling the country out of the economic chaos. He underscored that the country was facing unprecedented economic challenges owing to the negligence of the incumbent rulers and their vested interest to save looted wealth.

During the past 11 months, he said, these imported rulers had only forgiven their corruption and did nothing for the masses, adding that prices of all essential commodities had been multiplied.

Imran said that a historic fall had been seen in the value of Pakistani rupee against the greenback. “Despite consecutive warnings, handlers of the imported rulers executed a regime change operation in the country which caused huge economic loss to the country. However, Pakistan has huge untapped resources and with the right strategy and joint effort the country can be pulled out of the current crisis."

The PTI chief reiterated that there was a need for revolutionary reforms in the governance system of the country to stabilise the economy as investors only looked for certainty before making investment in any market.

Criticising the current rulers, he said that he had known these people for 30 years and knew they lacked the potential to stabilise the economy.

Earlier, PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that they wanted free and fair elections in the country.

Addressing a reception organised by the party workers in his honour after his release from the Attock Jail, the former foreign minister castigated the coalition government for the economic meltdown.

“The Pakistan Democratic Movement government came to power apparently to improve the national economy, but it miserably failed to deliver," he said. “It cannot ensure political and economic stability in the country."

According to him, inflation was out of control and the government had no answers to bring it under control. Inflation multiplied while industries were facing stagnation and unemployment in the country was on the rise while every section of society was worried about their future, he added.

Qureshi accused the government of hiding the conditions that the government agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from the people, adding that terrorism-related incidents in the country were also on the rise.

“The country is facing destruction while the economy is plummeting and the rulers are refusing to leave the government," he remarked.

He averred that institutions were used to stop the election as “the rulers are afraid of facing the people”.

“In the recent by-election in Rajanpur, the people rejected them,” he added.

He claimed that fake cases were registered against the PTI workers, but they had not lost heart, adding that prisoners were neither getting medicine nor food.

Meanwhile, after their release from jail, PTI Secretary General Asad Umar, former Punjab education minister Murad Ras and Senator Azam Swati also reached the provincial capital amidst a warm welcome from the party workers.

While addressing the PTI supporters, Umar averred that PTI Chairman Imran was fighting for the ‘Haqeeqi Azadi’ (true freedom) and he (Umar) was ready to give whatever sacrifice needed to attain that goal. He was confident that Pakistan would achieve true freedom in the near future.

“Pakistan does not belong to a select group of people taking decisions behind closed doors. It belongs to the 220 million Pakistanis,” he added.