- Days after failed military coup in Turkey, Imran says Turkish people supported Erdogan because he spent money on education and health and paid the nation’s debts; says Nawaz has done the opposite, so people will distribute sweets if army takes over in Pakistan
- Says democracy is under threat not from army but from Nawaz Sharif’s monarchy
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday said that the people of Pakistan will celebrate and distribute sweets if army takes over in the country, unlike what happened in Turkey.
“Democracy in Pakistan is under threat not from military but from Nawaz Sharif’s monarchy and the people will celebrate and distribute sweets if it takes over,” Imran said while addressing at political demonstration in Chaksawari, in Muzaffarabad, Azad Kashmir, ahead of elections in the valley on July 21.
The PTI chief said that the people of Turkey supported Erdogan as he increased the nation’s wealth, while PM Nawaz has burdened the people with more debt.
“Erdogan served his people, paid off their country’s debts, and constructed hospitals. That is why people supported him against the military,” Imran said.
‘NAWAZ IS NO ERDOGAN’:
Imran Khan said that Erdogan spent money on education and health, adding that the Turkish president waived off loans as well. He said that the public in Pakistan was being looted in the name of democracy. He said that Prime Minister Nawaz took loans worth Rs 6,000 billion during the past three years.
“In three years, Nawaz Sharif has burdened the people with billions in debt. Every Pakistani citizen has a debt of Rs 120,000 which is increasing every day.”
PM MUM OVER PANAMAGATE:
Imran also questioned the premier’s continued silence over the Panama Papers controversy.
“We demand PM Nawaz to tell us where he got the money from for his offshore accounts, but he does not give us answers,” Imran said.
“Sure, don’t reply. Saddam did not answer to his people. Neither did Qaddafi,” he added, referring to the slain leaders of Iraq and Libya respectively whose rules were overthrown in brutal civil wars.
He said that a prime minster is held accountable in a democratic setup but PM Nawaz is telling sad tales to the nation instead of responding on the Panama Leaks issue.
He said that the former British prime minister David Cameron also answered to his people, further adding that if the Pakistani prime minister was democratic, he would have responded in the parliament. He added that instead of responding to allegations, the government had tried to bribe the media and the opposition parties in the country.
Urging the people of Azad Kashmir to vote for his party, the PTI chairman said Pakistan should be strengthened in order to pressure India in favour of the Occupied Kashmir’s freedom.
Forces loyal to the Turkish government fought on Saturday to crush the attempted military coup which crumbled after crowds answered President Tayyip Erdogan’s call to take to streets and dozens of rebel soldiers abandoned their tanks.
More than 194 people — including 41 police, 47 civilians, two military officers and 104 described as “coup plotters” — were killed in clashes that erupted after a faction of the armed forces attempted to seize power using tanks and attack helicopters, some strafing the headquarters of Turkish intelligence and parliament in Ankara, others seizing a major bridge in Istanbul.
THE TORS ISSUE:
Earlier, on May 18, the government and opposition leaders agreed to form a 12-member Parliamentary Committee — including six members each from both sides — to draft the Terms of Reference (TORs) for the proposed commission to be headed by the country’s top judge for holding an enquiry against those owning offshore companies as revealed in the Panama Leaks.
Both the government and opposition parties had agreed that besides concentrating on the individuals named in the Panama Papers, the committee will also go after those who received kickbacks and commissions, as well as those who had their loans written off illegally.
Multiple rounds of talks between the two sides on the TORs failed as the opposition insisted on first holding the prime minister accountable while the government refused to make the Panama Leaks investigation PM-specific.
On May 31, the committee ended its fourth meeting in a stalemate and failed to evolve consensus on the issue.
According to independent observers, the committee may not reach consensus because both sides are poles apart as far as their expectations are concerned.
PTI announced during Ramzan that they will launch a “massive protest movement” over the Panama Leaks soon after Eidul Fitr.
PTI, PPP and Pakistan Awami Tehreek have all filed disqualification references with the Election Commission of Pakistan against the prime minister to declare him disqualified for elections under Articles 62 and 63 of the constitution.