JI chief asks govt to learn from BD crisis

Warns of expanding protest if demands not met

KARACHI/RAWALPINDI:

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has warned the government that the party's sit-ins will be further expanded if the government fails to address its demands.

"We don't want confrontation and chaos but don't take this restraint as our weakness. Instead take a look at what is going on in Kenya and Bangladesh," Naeem said on Sunday addressing the government.

For the last ten days, the JI has been staging a sit-in in Rawalpindi against the government's economic policy, which, it claims, has overburdened the common man. The party on Friday also decided to start a sit-in outside the Sindh Governor House.

Naeem who was visiting the Karachi sit-in on Sunday asked those in the corridors of power to reduce the electricity tariff "before it is too late and people refuse to pay the bills".

Talking with reference to the agreements with Independent Power Producers (IPPs), he said Rs8,500 billion has been paid to IPPs burdening the national exchequer.

He asked the authorities to get a forensic audit done of the accounts of the IPPs.

"Forensic audit of the IPP accounts will also expose multiple parties who have been the beneficiaries of the illogical agreements with these power producers," he said.

The JI leader claimed the rulers are hands in gloves with the IPPs and that is why they do not want to take any drastic action against them.

He said the rulers are reluctant to renegotiate agreements with the IPPs, despite the fact that negotiations are a matter of routine when it comes to international agreements.

He said the local agents of the International Monetary Fund (MF) in the ruling class have caused the prevailing situation. Talking about excessive taxes, he demanded that the government rationalize the tax regime and provide relief to the masses.

On the tenth day of their sit-in at Rawalpindi's Liaquat Bagh JI deputy chief Liaquat Baloch stated the sit-in has become a national movement, with traders, industrialists, youth, farmers, workers, women, and students all participating.