Minister of State for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Marriyum Aurangzeb on Monday said that Imran Khan was now running away from accountability as instead of answering questions about his off-shore companies and foreign funding for his party, he was seeking stay orders against the ECP proceedings into the matter and was also avoiding to attend the hearing of disqualification petition against him and Jahangir Tareen being heard by the Supreme Court.
She was talking to the media here. She said that holding of unimpressive public rallies as a ploy to distract attention of the public from his misdemeanours was not going to help as he would have to render answers to the questions being raised on the issue, which the nation was also eagerly awaiting.
Marrriyum maintained that Imran had filed wrong details about foreign funding for his party, his assets and off-shore companies. She asked as to why Imran was not attending the Supreme Court hearings like he used to do during the Panama Papers case and clarify his position regarding allegations against him?
Eulogizing the positive role of the media, she urged the need for reporting of the case against Imran Khan in the same way as was done when the Panama case was being heard by the court.
She observed that Imran had been relishing the spectacle of denigrating state institutions, hurling unsubstantiated allegations against his political opponents and even using foul language against them besides indulging in unwarranted slogan-mongering, which was the biggest sin.
She said even the ECP had categorically said that he was guilty of ridiculing the state institutions. The Minister of State said that the echoes of anti-Imran slogans resonating throughout the country now were the boomerang effect of what he had been doing since 2013.
The minister pointed out that Imran had the habit of throwing false and concocted allegations against his opponents and then apologizing in the court.
Marriyum claimed that Imran Khan and his party had failed to deliver to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during the last four years and merely installation of wi-fi system at the police stations did no change anything or made the police apolitical.
She observed that Imran had been raising the issue of corruption in all parts of the country but he shut the Ehtsab Commission in KPK when it started the accountability of the PTI ministers. Imran was holding very small rallies in Punjab and Sindh, but nobody was paying attention to problems of the KPK people.
She remarked that yesterday he had held a public rally in Sialkot and must have felt ashamed after seeing the development undertaken by the Punjab government there.
Marriyum remarked that during his visits to Punjab province Imran must have realized what was meant by good performance, service to the people and development.
Clarifying prime minister’s statement about corruption in New Islamabad Airport Project, she said that the PM had said that the issue was being looked into but first priority was to make the airport operational as delays in such mega projects resulted in escalation of the costs.
The minister said that Imran Khan must have received notice by Shahbaz Sharif for leveling baseless allegations regarding offer of Rs 10 billion for keeping mum on the Panama Papers issue and suggested that he should be given Rs 10 billion for opening his mouth as whenever he spoke it benefitted his political opponents and damaged him politically.
