Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira on Monday said Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif wanted to run government affairs under a “Rangeela Raj” and held 22 ministries himself which was a contradiction to his tall claims of good governance and a democratic culture in the province.
“One can see monarchy instead of a real democratic system in the province for how can a single person hold so many ministries,” he said questioning Sharif’s governance of the province during inauguration of a Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) secretariat in Khushab. PPP candidate for constituency NA 69 Amna Malik and a large number of party workers were present at the occasion. The minister said PPP opponents accused the government of causing inflation, unemployment and terrorism in the country but remained oblivious to landmark achievements of the PPP-led government on social, economic and diplomatic fronts. He said the country was in a much better position from multiple angles in comparison to the situation in 2008, the year PPP came into power, when terrorists had occupied the Swat valley and there were rumours that they would soon advance towards the federal capital. “We not only flushed them out from Swat but also maintained peace in the area in the aftermath of the operation,” he added.
Commenting on the PML-N victory in the by-elections, Kaira said the PML-N leadership was mistaken in considering their success as a political revival because massive rigging was committed during the polls. Evidence of rigging and use of government resources in the by-polls would soon be handed over to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the minister stated. Kaira claimed that only one seat was actually won by PML-N in the area whereas the other constituency was won through manipulation and rigging. “We always believe in politics of principles and do not indulge in fraud and deception,” he said. The PPP, he said, could not compete with PML-N in fraud for it was firm believer in getting votes through serving the masses.
Shahbaz Sharif running Punjabgovt under ‘Rangeela Raj’: Kaira
