Still waiting for a reply: Nawaz

Sharif says he has not as yet received a concrete reply for the letter he wrote to the president on working together.

LAHORE: Former Prime Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said that he has not as yet received a proper reply from the presidency to his letter in which he extended full support to the government if it agreed to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) agenda.

Speaking to the media in Lahore, the PML-N chief said that an interim reply was given by the president but nothing concrete could be derived from it.

Sharif also criticised the methods, the government had adopted to deal with important issues.

He said that those who broke assemblies and violated constitutions were presented with a guard of honour, adding that instead of wholeheartedly reinstating the judiciary, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government tried to retain old judges. He added that the benefits of the reinstatement of the judiciary are visible to everyone.

Sharif said that there is no good governance at the moment and no serious effort has been taken to curb corruption adding that if the government had taken a stern stance against corruption, the cabinet ministers’ drama would not have taken place at all.

The PML-N chief said the government did not apply efficient measures to deal with the energy crisis. He said that instead of Rental Power Projects, if the government had started building dams, the country would have been in a much better shape.

Commenting on the dinner at the presidency with the Chinese prime minster, Sharif said that he had accepted the invitation out of respect for Prime Minister Wen Jiabao and other matters would not be discussed at the occasion.