Sethi threatens to quit if elections are not held on time

Punjab Chief Minister Najam Sethi on Friday warned that he would be the first to quit if any attempt was made or any conspiracy was hatched to extend the tenure of the caretaker setup, adding that he accepted the position not because of ECP’s selection of his name but due to consensus among all parties on his appointment.

Addressing an informal news conference, Najam Sethi said that it is for the first time in the history of country that an independent‚ constitutional and non-political caretaker government had been established at the center and the provinces.

Furthermore, Sethi said that the US had played no role in his appointment as the caretaker chief minister and he never held a one-on-one meeting with the US envoy Richard Olson.

Reiterating his commitment to ensure timely, free and transparent elections across the country, Sethi said that he would be the first one to quit if any attempt was made or any conspiracy was hatched to extend the tenure of the caretaker setup. Sethi further said that he had been entrusted with the task of overseeing the upcoming elections, not starting development projects.

Moreover, he was of the view that he was not going to make any policy decisions as the task of the caretaker government was to extend cooperation to the ECP in ensuring free‚ fair and transparent elections, adding that he was neither interested nor canvassed for the office of the caretaker chief minister.

Elaborating further, he said that he did not accept the position because of acceptance of his name by the ECP but due to consensus evolved among political parties on his name.

Indicating a desire to appoint his own bureaucracy in the province, the caretaker CM added that five to six impartial people would be part of the Punjab caretaker setup.

Terming law and order situation worst problem in the province, Sethi said that the threat of terrorism in the upcoming elections was very real and that the Punjab government would do all it could to stop the subversive acts in the province.

“It is not completely possible to restrict terrorists from conducting any act of terrorism,” he said. “However, efforts can be made to thwart and prevent these with better coordination and preparation.”

Sethi said that he had complete backing of the ECP as far as the reshuffling of bureaucracy was concerned. He said to ensure the prime objective of holding free and fair elections‚ he would change the whole bureaucracy and administrative setup.

In this connection‚ he said that the appointment of inspector general of Punjab has been finalised and would be disclosed by this evening.

“I come from a media background and during the caretaker tenure, it will have a pivotal role to ensure the prime objective of free and fair elections,” he said.

Later, the caretaker chief minister paid a visit to the cricketer-turned-politician and Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan at his residence in Banigala where he discussed the current situation in Punjab with special focus on the upcoming polls.

Sethi thanked the PTI chairman for his support and trust in him, adding that he would take all necessary steps to ensure free and fair elections in the province.