Seeking development: JI chief demands Rs1b package for Karachi
Urges premier to resolve issues facing the city.
JI Ameer Sirajul Haq addresses party supporters in Karachi. PHOTO: ONLINE
KARACHI:
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Chief Sirajul Haq on Sunday called upon Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to announce a special Rs1 billion package for the development of Karachi. He was speaking at his first public meeting after taking over as JI ameer in April this year.
In his speech, Sirajul Haq criticised the democratic setup in the country, the poor kept becoming poorer while the ‘hereditary’ leadership of other parties prevented them from coming to the fore.
“Our people are dying. Our youth is forced into selling their kidneys because of poverty. And since the country’s financial system is based on interest, banks only give loans to those who already have billions. The poor get nothing,” he added.
The JI chief said the country had experienced both military and civilian rule in its 65-year history but had never experienced the Islamic system. He added that the Islamic system was the solution to all our problems.
Sirajul Haq said corruption by political leaders was as big a challenge for the country as polio. Vowing to eradicate polio if voted to power, he demanded a ‘vaccine for corruption’.
Regarding Prime Minister Nawaz’s decision to attend Indian prime minister-elect Narendra Modi’s inauguration, the JI leader said political parties should have been consulted over the move. “The prime minister should now take up the issue of Kashmir with Indian authorities and raise Pakistan’s reservations against the building of dams by India on Pakistani rivers,” he said.
The JI chief also urged the premier to turn his attention towards deteriorating law and order in Karachi. “Fathers in Karachi are tired of holding funerals for their sons. The prime minister should come to Karachi to resolve its issues.”
Sirajul Haq also criticised the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) for displaying banners in the city calling Altaf Hussain ‘father of the nation’. “If father of the nation has no [Pakistani] passport or CNIC, then how can he lead his nation?” he asked.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 26th, 2014.
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Chief Sirajul Haq on Sunday called upon Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to announce a special Rs1 billion package for the development of Karachi. He was speaking at his first public meeting after taking over as JI ameer in April this year.
In his speech, Sirajul Haq criticised the democratic setup in the country, the poor kept becoming poorer while the ‘hereditary’ leadership of other parties prevented them from coming to the fore.
“Our people are dying. Our youth is forced into selling their kidneys because of poverty. And since the country’s financial system is based on interest, banks only give loans to those who already have billions. The poor get nothing,” he added.
The JI chief said the country had experienced both military and civilian rule in its 65-year history but had never experienced the Islamic system. He added that the Islamic system was the solution to all our problems.
Sirajul Haq said corruption by political leaders was as big a challenge for the country as polio. Vowing to eradicate polio if voted to power, he demanded a ‘vaccine for corruption’.
Regarding Prime Minister Nawaz’s decision to attend Indian prime minister-elect Narendra Modi’s inauguration, the JI leader said political parties should have been consulted over the move. “The prime minister should now take up the issue of Kashmir with Indian authorities and raise Pakistan’s reservations against the building of dams by India on Pakistani rivers,” he said.
The JI chief also urged the premier to turn his attention towards deteriorating law and order in Karachi. “Fathers in Karachi are tired of holding funerals for their sons. The prime minister should come to Karachi to resolve its issues.”
Sirajul Haq also criticised the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) for displaying banners in the city calling Altaf Hussain ‘father of the nation’. “If father of the nation has no [Pakistani] passport or CNIC, then how can he lead his nation?” he asked.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 26th, 2014.