Hitting back: Raja Riaz defends Malik Riaz, slams Punjab CM
Riaz says targeting of Bahria Town owner by Shahbaz is ‘a reflection of his mind-set’.
Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Raja Riaz. PHOTO: AFP/ FILE
Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly Raja Riaz has condemned the Punjab government for unleashing a “character assassination campaign” against property tycoon Malik Riaz since the completion of the new Bilawal House in Bahria Town, Lahore.
According to a press release issued on Friday, Raja Riaz said that the Punjab chief minister could not stop President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto from visiting Lahore through his “witch hunting,” which he added, “stemmed from a personal vendetta”.
The opposition leader further said that Malik Riaz’s humanitarian services were acknowledged across the country, and added that he had provided thousands of houses free of cost to flood and earthquake victims.
The Punjab chief minister, on the other hand, squandered developmental funds worth billions of rupees in the Sasti Roti Scheme which had to eventually be discontinued, Raja Riaz said.
The press release further stated that Malik Riaz had been providing free meals to thousands of people on a daily basis.
Riaz added that the Punjab CM’s targeting of Malik Riaz was nothing more than a reflection of his mind-set.
He said DG of the Lahore Development Authority Ahad Cheema should be arrested for misappropriating billions of rupees of public money from the Metro Bus Service Project.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 23rd, 2013.