Amid exchange of allegations between the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) over President Asif Ali Zardari’s health and the memo scandal in the National Assembly on Thursday, Awami National Party (ANP) legislator Bushra Gohar took the lead and demanded the resignation of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Director General Ahmed Shuja Pasha for having been accused by Mansoor Ijaz for seeking Arab rulers’ support to remove Zardari.
Gohar’s demand was supported by Opposition Leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan which was a complete U-turn from his earlier stance in which he had defended Pasha, saying that Ijaz’s allegations against the ISI chief were part of a conspiracy to malign the national spy agency.
“When a foreigner (Mansoor Ijaz) levelled allegations against Hussain Haqqani, he (the ambassador) was asked to resign to make investigations transparent … now Ijaz has accused the ISI DG of seeking support of Arab countries for Zardari’s ouster but he (Pasha) is investigating the ‘memo’ issue … General Pasha should also resign to make the memo investigations impartial,” she said while criticising Nisar’s speech in which he had defended the ISI DG in the memo case and had termed Ijaz’s allegation against Pasha a lie. However, ANP Information Secretary Senator Zahid Khan distanced himself from Gohar’s demand, saying it was her personal opinion and not the party’s policy.
Earlier, speaking on a point of order, Chaudhry Nisar criticised the government for its delay in rebutting news report in which Ijaz claimed that the ISI DG had sought support of Arab countries after the Abbotabad incident to remove Zardari. “I know he (Pasha) is not a fool that he would seek approval from Arab countries for Zardari’s ouster … this is a conspiracy to malign the ISI in the world … the report is a lie and should be rebutted by the government but I do not know why the government is keeping mum over the issue,” he said.
Later on when Gohar challenged the PML-N’s double standard on the memo case, Nisar backtracked from his stance, saying that he endorsed Gohar’s demand. “Bushra Gohar represents the treasury benches, therefore the ANP should ask the PPP government to get resignation from the ISI DG … I was the man who repeatedly talked about General Pasha’s resignation in front of him during the joint sitting of the parliament,” Nisar said.
Severely criticising the government over the Shamsi Airbase issue, Nisar said giving the base to foreigners without any written agreement was tantamount to treason. “Who authorised former president Pervez Musharraf to hand over Shamsi Airbase to the United States for launching aerial attacks inside Pakistan … the governments (previous and incumbent) have been denying the presence of NATO forces on the base for the last ten years which turned out to be a complete lie,” he said.
On Zardari’s health, the opposition leader said that contradictory statements by top government officials had created confusion about the president’s health, indicating that the ruling party had no competence to run the affairs of the country.
Expressing disappointment over the prime minister’s speech in the Senate on Wednesday, Nisar asked him to expose the conspiracy which was haunting him. “Had the PML-N intended to hatch a conspiracy against the government, it would have succeeded three years ago in toppling the government,” he said without elaborating the nature and timing of the conspiracy which could be hatched three years ago against the government. Nisar further assailed the government for a reported expenditure of Rs 260 million on the renovation of the presidency’s kitchen.
Responding to Nisar’s tirade, PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said his party was not concealing anything from the nation. “Our government did not handed over Shamsi or any other airbase to NATO … we are releasing a daily health bulletin on the president’s health to the media,” he said. Kaira said that Ijaz’s charges against the ISI DG were as baseless as his allegations against Hussain Haqqani and others. On the reported renovation of the presidency’s kitchen, Kaira said the president himself had rejected the proposal and the government would soon issue a rebuttal against such news.
Bushra Gohar has right to demand anything, but point to ponder is all are telling lie and only and only Zardari & co. is honest, loyal and Pasha is not acceptable because he is not in good book of Washington + Delhi ?
SHOULD BE RESIGN
ISI is absolutely essential for security of our country. Those who are asking for ISI Chief’s resignation are misguided. JR
NO
he is a best pakistani
JIS KI LATHEE < USS KI BHAINS(MIGHT IS RIGHT) . Try to understand,Bushra bibi.
NOW ANOTHER CIRCUS WALI CAME IN THE OPEN ARENA TO WIN CHEAP FAME .WHAT ISI HAS HURT YOU? PLZ.THINK POSITIVELY TO SERVE THE COUNTRY IN THE PROPER WAY NOT BY GETTING CHEAP AND FAKE FAME.FIRST SEE YOURSELF WHAT THE LEADERS OF YOUR PARTY HAS GIVEN TO PAKISTAN?
THIS IS RUBISH AND BULLSHEETING STATEMENT.ISI CHIEF IS DOING THE BEST DUTIES GOOD IN THE INTEREST OF THE COUNTRY.HE DOES NOT CARE FOR DOLLARS,BUT PRERFER TO SERVE HIS COUNTRY HONESTLY.
yeah we need a RESIGNATION
Pak Military must Be reined it
stupid military 1st it broke our East wing
now Our military is creating same Situation in Balochistan
and FATA + surroundings !
,,
bloody uncivilized Idiots they are !
lol no one is gonna resign its time for looters to move their asses!
Military and ISI = POISON for Pakistan!
the colonel’s daughter
a civilian cant utter
@Rana Junaid: The only people who “broke” East Pakistan were the East Pakistanis themselves, not the Army. It was Bhutto’s tactics which were wrong, a civilian leader, not the military. And to compare East Pakistan to Baluchistan is nothing more than an Indian wet dream. You should stop watching Indian media and start using your brain, maybe then you’ll write something which makes something close to SENSE.
As for the ISI, the only reason Pakistan still exists is because of the ISI. Remember that saying “Pata nahi Pakistan kis tara chal raha hai”. Well that answer is 3 letters = I.S.I. If you don’t like it…too bad. If you don’t like Pakistan…get out and stay out.
In one sentence you blamed East Pakistan and in next Bhutto?
@ Pakistan , yes, i agree the only reason Pakistan exist in present condition is ISI
and the grievance of Bengali was from first day
and keep in made the population of Bangladesh was more than West Pakistan
and Muslim League was formed in Bengal
then how can u try to say Bengali wanted to be separate !
well done lady, at least someone has guts in that country ……….as for the rest of you read history, and do let me know if Bhutto raped the the women of East Pakistan or your army…….. do tell.
playgirl of universiy town in 8os
That makes no sense— why would he resign? Scheming was done against him and Pak Army, why should the victim (at least in this particular case) resign?
Perhaps entrapment is being implied or it is possible that outright fabricated evidence could have been presented by the uniforms?
In any case where does the SC court get justification to subvert the Parliaments enquiry? Is it a penal code crime for an unpopular Supreme Commander to scheme his generals removal?
@Tahir Baluch: For you and everyone with a limited capacity for abstract thought.
1. Mansoor Ijaz says Haqqani conspired with the US against the Army so he had to resign.
2. Mansoor Ijaz also says that Pasha asked the Saudis for their permission to overthrow Zardari.
By that logic, Pasha should also resign. If he shouldn't because Mansoor is not trustworthy, then so shouldn't Haqqani.
The second bit is fabricated. If the Pak Army wanted to overthrow the regime, they have every bit of support to do so from the people. It's just the fact that there would be even more mess to clean up afterwards, and with the Pak Army spread out so thinly, the last thing they would want to do at the moment, is open another battlefront.
As for my limited capacity, it is possible that I could fit your entire thinking capacity in a matchbox, and it would still leave me enough room to play cricket inside.
The second bit is fabricated and the first bit is not? Are you some sort of fortune teller and your parrot just picked the first as true and second as false?
I agree with Shaaka.
Someone is losing it " Gohar".
Friends, let’s not be emotional and think deep in our souls. General Zia and General Akthar Abdul Rehaman made an unholy war with US, Saudi Arabia and converted Pakistan into Jihadistan, used petro-dollars to shed Afghans blood, made the USSR weaken. It was Bushra Gohar’s ancestor, Baacha Khan and ANP who said that US and USSR are fighting their own war in Afghanistan and Pakistan should not be involved, but Pakistan did not listen. General Musharaf and his army made an alliance with the US and sold Taliban and Al-Qaida to US but played a double game as he was supporting some but no others as it was a good business. The Taliban attacked Pakistani Pashtuns when they were chased by drones.
Let’s the Pakistan powerful general set an example by resign with degnity, get pardon from Afghans and Bushra Gohar’s ancestors and put Pakistan on the path of tolerance, religious and communal harmony, love and respect. Lets leave that to proud people that if Zaradri govt don’t not delive, people will not elect them in the next election, but if unconstitutional or ultra constitutional tactics have been used, then MQM, Baluch and Pashtuns will consider that what Punjab wants, it happens and they don’t matter in Pakistan any more.
TREASON!!!!
ANP is not a partriot party of Pakistan…
Let us not assume the responsibility of issuing Certificates of Patriotism. This mindset has damaged us enough. The people of Pakistan should be given authority to decide such things through regular uninterrupted electoral exercise as enshrined in our Constitution. If our khaki establishment had let this happen, by now, we could have sorted many of our problems. Alas, every now & then, somebody appears on the scene and announces that system had failed and he will set things right. But every time such an adventurer quits, he leaves us in a worse condition.
The ANP is in bed with the PPP. Pasha should give Ms Gohar the finger and ignore her out burst.
No foul language, please.
well! I think everyone can say whatever they think , Let Gohar speak , who is going to care.
and @ shahid Malik …. keep playing "foul foul foul" … good job
isi dg should not resign. now this is interesting development and look like all conspiricy against pakistan army. it could be backfire on army for their vigilence and keeping an eye on looters of the country and now when looters are exposed, they are back firing the army.
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