MANDI BAHAUDDIN: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that letting PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif leave Pakistan was a “major mistake” made by the incumbent government.<\/p>\n
In order to counter the Opposition\u2019s efforts to bring a no-trust motion, the prime minister has kicked off his PR campaign today, with the first public rally being held in Mandi Bahauddin.<\/p>\n
The ruling party had announced a mass contact campaign to mobilise the party at the grassroots level after the Opposition parties started contacting the PTI allies seeking support for the no-trust motion.<\/p>\n
The prime minister, addressing the rally in Mandi Bahauddin, lashed out PML-N, PPP, and other Opposition parties for “looting the country’s wealth and stashing their money abroad”.<\/p>\n
He asked why was the Opposition in such a hurry to bring the no-confidence motion against him, as he took a jibe at Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif that he was worried about Maqsood chaprasi \u2014 who is accused of laundering the PML-N leader’s money.<\/p>\n
Berating PML-N President Shahbaz, the premier said that he had a “weak heart and knew he would not be able to escape if his case (of being a guarantor in Nawaz Sharif’s case) is heard”.<\/p>\n
“If Shahbaz Sharif is innocent, then why is he running away from courts?” the prime minister questioned.<\/p>\n
The prime minister said since he did not run away from the court whenever he was summoned and provided every document that the judiciary demanded.<\/p>\n
“Why are you (Shahbaz) running away from courts? Ask for a day-to-day hearing,” he advised the leader of the Opposition.<\/p>\n
Turning his guns on PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz, he said Nawaz’s daughter claims she has “tapes” on government officials.<\/p>\n
“Have you ever heard a politician blackmail (others) via tapes,” he asked.<\/p>\n
PM Imran Khan blamed PML-N for the “fake” audio tape that was made against former chief justice Saqib Nisar and said politicians do not indulge in such activities rather it was what the “mafias” do.<\/p>\n
“Maryam bibi is threatening judges […] she wants an early dismissal of the incumbent government,” he said, noting that he would keep fighting the corrupt elements “till my last breath”.<\/p>\n
The premier said the PML-N \u2014 and the Opposition as a whole \u2014 wanted an NRO from him, similar to the one former dictator Pervez Musharraf gave them.<\/p>\n
“Till they return the nation’s money, I will not spare them.”<\/p>\n
“I have a message for the Sharif family: The captain is ready for all your plans. You will not only face defeat, but all of you will go to jail,” the prime minister vowed.<\/p>\n
The prime minister said when bombardments were taking place during the “war on terror”, those in the Opposition now were tight-lipped on the matter.<\/p>\n
“They were quite as their property and money were stashed abroad […] they were their slaves,” the premier said.<\/p>\n
The prime minister reiterated he had no personal enmity with the Opposition leaders and that he was only fighting against them as he wanted a prosperous Pakistan.<\/p>\n
Inflation and measures to fix it<\/strong> “The journalist fraternity is aware of the reason behind the rising inflation. After coronavirus, the supply lines were suspended, and as a result, the price of commodities shot up,” he said.<\/p>\n PM Imran Khan said per barrel cost of petrol had risen from $40 to $90, and when the government reduces duties on the commodity, it faces losses worth Rs70 billion.<\/p>\n “I promise to reduce the burden on the people.”<\/p>\n
\nThe prime minister also admitted that inflation was rising in the country, but he mentioned that he was always thinking of ways to get the nation out of this crisis.<\/p>\n