Nawaz threatens to spill the beans if ‘they’ don’t stop political engineering

• Former PM says some forces trying to ‘block the way for a certain political party, and pave the way for the darling’

• Says will reveal what has been happening in Islamabad for the past four years if ‘propaganda’ is not stopped

• Calls Trump’s tweet ‘non-serious’, urges PM Abbasi to formulate economic plan that does not rely on US aid

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday warned against manipulation in the upcoming general elections, threatening to reveal what has been happening in Islamabad for the past four years if “they” do not stop their “propaganda”.

Addressing a press conference at Punjab House here upon his return from a much-speculated visit to Saudi Arabia where he met top Saudi officials, Nawaz said: “If, in 2001, a democratic government was in place in Pakistan instead of a dictatorship, then it would never have sold its expertise to the US. It would neither have sold our expertise, nor our self-respect.”

He was flanked by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Chairman Raja Zafarul Haq, Senator Pervez Rasheed, Senator Mushahidullah Khan, State Minister for Information Marriyum Aurangzeb and other leaders.

The former premier began his press conference — that was delayed by over an hour — by asserting that his government does not care for US threats to cut funding to Islamabad in the war against terrorism.

Islamabad and Washington have been trading barbs after US President Donald Trump lashed out at Pakistan in a harshly-worded tweet on New Year’s day, and the US suspended $255 million in military aid to Pakistan. The US president’s tweets are a matter of concern for Pakistanis, who view his words as offensive and disrespectful.

Describing Trump’s tweet as “non-serious” and “sad”, Nawaz said, “A head of state should remember the rules of engagement while addressing a fellow state.”

“We should not be taunted [about US aid],” he said, adding that he would “advise Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to formulate a plan that ensures we don’t need any US aid so that such attacks are not made on our self respect”.

“A coalition fund should not be called ‘aid’. We do not even need such a fund and our support should not be demanded in return,” he said.

“The US president should know that as soon as we came into power in 2013, we took effective steps to end terrorism in Pakistan,” he said, adding that Operation Zarb-e-Azb had “broken the backs of terrorists”.

“This is not 2001. A dictator is not ruling the country, and one telephone call will not scare us,” he asserted.

“I have been the PM of this country thrice. A lot of facts are in front of me. As a respectable citizen of Pakistan, I would like for us, as a nation, to assess our own situation,” he urged.

“I have always said that we should look at ourselves often and ask ourselves why the world does not take us seriously. But every time I have said this, the comment has not been taken seriously and sometimes it has been termed as ‘Dawn leaks’ and at other times as other conspiracy theories.”

“We should ask ourselves why the world never listens to us in spite of the countless sacrifices that our police, security forces, civilians and even children have given over the past 17 years. Why is our narrative not being accepted?” he questioned. “We need to search for the answers to these questions.”

“If these questions are sidelined and the answers for them are not sought, then it would count as self-deception. It is because of these self deceptions that Pakistan has been polarised in the first place.

“We should step away from this self deception now, and the country’s leadership ─ all its institutions ─ should join hands to find the answers to these questions and provide solutions to them.”

The former PM also described how elections in Pakistan have historically not been taken seriously, preventing successive prime ministers from completing their term.

“The Quaid said that the nation’s decision is never wrong, but here over the past 70 years, either the public’s decision is twisted or their choice of leader is turned into an example for all to see.”
Because 2018 is a year for elections, he said, “this worn-out rule of the past is being applied again today.”

Without specifying who ‘they’ are, Nawaz said: “They are trying to shift the public’s views… Block the way for a certain political party, and pave the way for the darling.”

“The most recent assessment of the numbers says that the PML-N is still ahead of any other political party and its vote bank is still larger than the vote bank of all other political parties combined.

The ones afraid of this truth are trying hard to change the reality and turn it into something else,” he alleged.

“I want to say in crystal clear words today that this country’s fate is linked to free and fair elections. Every political party should have equal opportunity to take part in these elections.”

“Secret telephone calls and deals should not be used to tie our hands, and to give the darling a new deal and new dheel (freedom).”

“Democracy should be given a chance to grow in the country,” he added.

“Those people who have done nothing for the nation’s development, and whom the country has rejected repeatedly, should not be patted on the back and imposed on the country. Pakistan’s people are aware and are capable of making their own decisions, and their opinions and the sanctity of their vote should not be destroyed.”

“I would also like to say that if this propaganda does not stop I will spill the beans on them, right here in Islamabad, with all the evidence. I will tell the tale of the past four years and tell the nation what has been going on here in all that time,” he warned.

“I will tell the nation what is happening now, and how the electoral process is being sidelined by imposition of personal opinions,” he concluded.

The ousted PM then left the venue without taking questions from the media.