Punjab govt wants its bullet-proof cars back but Christian senator won’t return his!

The Punjab caretaker government has ordered all former secretaries, ministers and advisers, to return government sanctioned vehicles allotted to them but a Christian senator from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has refused to return his bullet-proof SUV, Pakistan Today has learnt.

Per reports, out of a total of 101 vehicles, 97 have been returned to the government following the orders, while four vehicles have not been submitted as yet.

These vehicles have registration numbers LWL-9160, PG-148, LWL-4531 and NC-49 which were under the use of former adviser to chief minister Zulfiqar Ali Khosa, Syed Mehdi, Punjab Assembly former deputy speaker Rana Mashood and Senator Kamran Michel, respectively.

Before being posted as the Sindh chief secretary, Punjab Chief Secretary Nasir Mahmood Khosa issued a notification concerning return of all government vehicles from former government functionaries so that they are not used during election campaigns.

Sources told Pakistan Today that Senator Kamran Michel had refused to return his bullet-proof vehicle claiming he had threats to his life.

Pakistan Today made repeated calls and sent text messages to Senator Kamran Michael to ask him about the nature of threats received by him but he did not respond to the messages.

Commenting on Senator Michael’s refusal to return the vehicle, several Christians said that in spite of his influence in the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Senator Michael had been the least vocal in highlighting the plight of the minority community yet he was citing security threats to his life.

“Even when he was a member of the Punjab Assembly and held two portfolios in the provincial cabinet of Shahbaz Sharif, Michael just towed his party line and kept silent when his community needed him the most. He did not do anything when Christians in Gojra were being subjected to violence and he vanished from the scene on the day Joseph Colony was set on fire over an alleged blasphemy incident. Who does he fear when his own party is hand in glove with banned religious outfits,” said David Fazl, who works as an office superintendent in a mission school.

Asif Bhatti, a resident of Youhanabad, also criticized Michael for not speaking up for the rights of Christians.

“He has obtained a bullet-proof vehicle and several police vehicles as a show of power and nothing else. Michael has never spoken up for us… he’s never there when we need him. Shahbaz Bhatti showed some courage and spoke for our rights but Michael lacks the moral courage to confront his party over issues concerning Christians. His role in Gojra and Joseph Colony is deplorable. The government has imposed such cowards on us through joint electorate system. We should be given the right to elect our own representatives. At least they can be held accountable for not working for the community,” he said.

Anita Khokhar, a teacher at a local school, said it was ironic that Christian legislators required security when none of them had actually stood up against extremists.

“Who is Michael afraid of? He should return the vehicle and police security because the people he is serving are the ones responsible for majority of the attacks on minorities. Of course they wouldn’t let their extremist allies hurt one of their own,” she said.

Anita said that a day before Joseph Colony was attacked, several Christians contacted Senator Michael and asked him to intervene in the matter before it got out of hands. “He did nothing and remained inaccessible until Saturday evening when the entire colony had been burnt down. Akram Masih Gill, former minister for National Harmony, was not an exception. He told our elders that he was powerless and could not do anything about the situation. This is what happens when you hand-pick people to ‘represent’ a community. These so-called minority leaders don’t represent us…they have been imposed on us,” she said.