Face to face: An upbeat Imran aims for the PM House

PTI chief says scrutiny should focus on financial impropriety.

KARACHI:

If Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has any doubts about his party’s chances of winning the upcoming general elections, he keeps them well hidden. In an interview right before his news conference, Imran spoke about his disdain for his main electoral rival, Pakistan Muslim League-N chief Nawaz Sharif, the fate of former president Pervez Musharraf and, interestingly enough, about the kind of questions being asked by returning officers.

As far as the latter topic is concerned, Imran’s stance is clear: ROs should stick to scrutinising financial corruption. “Scrutiny is always centered on financial impropriety or an obvious case of poor credibility,” he said, adding that the idea is to catch corrupt politicians. “If you widen the net [to include religion and personal conduct] these people [the corrupt] may get away.”

He unequivocally stated that disqualifying people on the basis that they failed to recite an Islamic verse defeats the purpose of the process. “This is not a religious knowledge test,” he said. “If this continues, some people who pose as religious and know all these answers despite being corrupt may pass through.” He emphasised the importance of catching loan defaulters, and felt religion should be “left to the personal domain”.

If Articles 62 and 63 are interpreted in a way which narrows the focus simply to the ‘ideology of Pakistan’, Imran feels that the wrong people will benefit. “People who have destroyed Pakistan’s future will come back into power,” he said grimly. He added, however, that a person who doesn’t believe in the very concept of Pakistan should not be in the National Assembly for obvious reasons.



After issuing public statements about having evidence of the Sharif brothers’ corruption in specific cases, Imran has failed to present any concrete proof during their scrutiny phase. When asked why, he responded with a laugh, “Should we be concentrating on our election campaign or go after them?” He explained that lawyers had advised him that, with a few weeks left for elections, there was not enough time to prove the allegations in a court.

When asked how his party - a movement that bills itself as one that stands for justice - feels about the chief justice being on the bench that will hear the petition demanding Gen (retd) Pervez Musharraf be put on trial for high treason, Imran deflects the question. “If a treason case against Musharraf begins, then there will be only one conclusion.” He then changed the topic to focus on his main rival, Nawaz Sharif. “It is astounding for all of us that Nawaz Sharif is being conspicuously silent [about Musharraf] - he hasn’t uttered a word! He is the man who was affected the most. Why is he being as meek as a mouse? If someone had removed me from office through unconstitutional means,” asked Imran, “Would I keep this quiet?”

Then he answered his own question by smiling and mumbling about “some meeting in Saudi Arabia where a deal was struck”.

Between Musharraf and Nawaz Sharif, Imran couldn’t decide who he thinks has hurt the country more. “Musharraf brought in the NRO and allowed this government to plunder Pakistan for five years. Nawaz Sharif has amassed a fortune - there is no such thing as a ‘nicer person’ between the two.”

Upcoming elections

Imran said that PTI would request army security on polling stations on May 11, to ensure free and fair elections. “We definitely want the army to guard sensitive stations - they are the only institution that can guarantee any sort of protection.”

At a news conference held at the Pearl Continental after this interview afternoon, Imran was left perplexed at a question asked about whether or not he will quit his party position if made prime minister. Imran chose to pass the question onto the party’s former general secretary Arif Alvi, who said the party’s constitution maintains that elected officials will forego their party positions, something other political parties do not implement.

Seat adjustment with JI

While he admitted that the seats adjustment plan with the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) ‘is not working out’, he defended his willingness to finalise the plan for various constituencies. “We talked to the JI because they stood on principle with the All Parties Democratic Movement and boycotted the 2008 elections, unlike Nawaz Sharif who abandoned all of us.” He added that JI chief Munawwar Hasan is ‘a clean man’ and that “no one can raise a finger against him when it comes to corruption”.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 7^th, 2013.