ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister of Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday claimed that former president Asif Ali Zardari and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif have already contested their last elections.
Speaking to reporters, the minister said that both the leaders who are indicted in different corruption references will now spend the rest of their lives in jail.
He emphasised that unlike the former governments, no one is above accountability in the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.
“All federal ministers are being held questionable for their performance,” he said, adding that the sale of government-owned vehicles was a clear signal to the cabinet members that they’ll also be held accountable.
The information minister also added that Nawaz’s lifestyle had been sponsored by the national exchequer.
“Every brick of the Raiwind residence was built on government funds. If Nawaz’s family has been multi-millionaire through generations, then how come taxpayers’ money was used for his health checkup?” he questioned.
The minister said that the challenges being faced by the present government were governance and economy while pragmatic steps were being taken for improvement.
Fawad quoted Prime Minister Imran Khan as saying that the government sincerely believed in changing the lot of the poor. He said that the main difference between the present and the previous governments was that the present government was sincere in changing the lot of the poor.
To a question, he said that it was prerogative of the prime minister to change portfolios of the minister, though in the cabinet meeting he did not give any impression to reshuffle the cabinet.
He justified taxation on imported mobile phones saying the country is importing cellular phones worth two billion dollars and the wealthy people who purchase costly imported phones and makeup item have to pay taxes so that the poorest segments of the society could be provided health and education facilities.
Fawad later concluded that the financial cabinet is working to create a “self-sufficient” Pakistan.