Great expectations: ‘On what grounds should we talk to the Taliban’

New government should provide relief to the people by easing load shedding.

LAHORE:

The people expect the new government to overcome the energy crisis, ease the economic crunch and eradicate terrorism, said speakers at a seminar organised by the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA) on Saturday.

Dr Hasan Askari Rizvi said the new government should provide immediate relief to the people by easing load shedding.

He said it would be ‘disappointing’ if the government failed to cut load shedding by at least 50 per cent in the next six months.

Rizvi said to overcome terrorism, the country must not beg the Taliban for peace negotiations. He said talks had already been held with them in the past and “did not work.”

“On what ground and principles should talks be held with them [Taliban] is the question,” he said.

He said the Taliban refused to recognise the Constitution’s sovereignty or accept society’s norms.

He said it was important that job opportunities were created through the economic policies of the new government.

Rizvi said if the concept of interdependence was followed by all political parties it could help the country – grow as a democracy.

Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed, the leader of the opposition in the provincial assembly, said Pakistan was rich in natural resources. What it needed was a visionary leadership capable of delivering the goods.

He said hydel power projects should be undertaken to provide power relief to the masses.

He said the intelligence agencies should work for the rule of law and not seek to ‘manage’ the elections. He said the fundamental duty of any government was to provide security to the people.

Rasheed said Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz should change their priorities. Instead of building bullet trains, metro bus services and overhead bridges, they should improve country’s social indicators.

“Priority should be given to education and health sectors,” he said.

MPA Kanwal said the PML-N had received the popular mandate because of good governance in the Punjab over the last five years.

She requested other parties and political leaders in the government as well as the opposition to put their differences aside and accept the election results.

“We need some time to deliver…the problems can’t be solved in a day,” she said.

Chaudhry Manzoor, a Pakistan Peoples Party’s Central Executive Committee member, said it was more of an ‘arrangement’ than an election.

He said all political parties were short of good economists and had to rely on foreigners.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 9^th, 2013.