Khawaja Asif criticises impact of 'non-democratic regimes' on political landscape

Defence minister notes when uncertainty prevails, new political factions, press conferences, televised outcries begin

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has responded to rumors of the civilian government's demise, stating that successive non-democratic and incident-prone regimes throughout the nation's history have given rise to a lineage always prepared for calamitous events.

In a statement on the social media platform X, Asif remarked that nowadays numerous press conferences and TV shows are underway, with the beloved country's politics giving rise to countless incidents over the past 75 years.

He expressed that such incidents lead to the establishment of non-democratic setups that are not products of elections and, at times, are extended for indefinite periods. 

The minister also indicated that these incident-prone governmental setups have spawned a generation of politicians, technocrats, and businessmen who are constantly prepared for impending crises.

Asif further noted that when uncertainty prevails, new political factions, press conferences, and televised lamentations begin, often diverting attention toward Rawalpindi's direction.

In his tweet, Asif shared several verses from renowned poet Iftikhar Arif's poem "Barhwan Khiladi" (12th Man), emphasising the endurance and preparedness instilled in the nation's leadership amid adversity.

"The twelfth player, too, 
What a remarkable player!
He waits... 
For a moment, 
For an hour, 
In which a disaster strikes, 
Then he steps out to play."