Imran tells Opp leaders to buy freedom with ‘stolen money’

–PM says PML-N and PPP leaders should return ‘looted’ money if they want corruption cases to end

–Says in spite of producing 70pc gas for Sindh, people of Ghotki remain poor

KARACHI: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday said that his government won’t let the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leadership go scot-free unless they cough up the money stolen from the public exchequer.

Addressing a rally in Ghotki, the prime minister warned the opposition leaders that this country won’t forgive them.

“You have only one route: give the country’s money back and we will let you go,” the prime minister said.

The PPP and PML-N used to accuse each other of corruption, however, now “both are trying to come together to save democracy,” he remarked, questioning the sincerity of the two parties’ political moves.

Referring to the train march by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the prime minister said they could protest all they want even at D-Chowk, but they should remember that the PTI launched sit-in for fair polls, not to defend ‘thefts’.

“We will provide you food in the containers,” the premier said, adding that he will see how long they can hold their ground.

The prime minister said whenever the government spoke of accountability, the opposition started “propaganda of threat to democracy”. “It’s not democracy, but their corrupt practices that’s under threat,” he said.

SINDH’S MONEY STOLEN:

Addressing residents of Ghotki, the prime minister said the province had gotten Rs234bn in gas royalties over the past 10 years; however, the Sindh government failed to work for the betterment of the region despite the fact it produces 70 per cent of the gas.

Everything had gone to the provinces in the National Finance Commission (NFC) award at a time when the federal government itself was going bankrupt, he said, adding that money supposed to be spent on people went into “fake accounts”.

It may be noted that the PPP leadership, including its co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur, are facing a NAB probe in a case pertaining to fake accounts.

Imran said Pakistan was once the fastest growing nation in Asia and even South Korea had adopted Pakistan’s development model but now it (Pakistan) was under record debt of Rs30 trillion. The country has to pay Rs6 billion as mark-up on the loans, the PM said.

He questioned how the country’s indebtedness rose from Rs6 trillion to Rs30 trillion in the past 10 years alone. He said no country is poor by default, it is corruption which eats away at its core.

“Where did the money go?” he asked, adding that when the people responsible for the country’s precarious financial position were being held to account, “they say democracy had come under threat”.

He said being home to Karachi, the country’s financial capital, most gas reserves and fertile land, Sindh should have been the most developed province. On the contrary, interior Sindh was the poorest area in Pakistan, just due to corruption, he said.

The prime minister said his government was committed to ending the practice of using police to victimise political opponents in Sindh.

‘ONLY PTI AND MQM REPRESENT KARACHI’:

Addressing the gathering, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the parties which had been a symbol of federation in the past were now missing from Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Karachi.

He said only PTI and MQM were representing Karachi, not the PPP that had now been shrunk to interior Sindh.

He said PPP had been ruling Sindh from 2008 to 2018 but the living standard of the people remained unchanged which required a second thought by the people to find a new course.

Separately, leaders of allied parties also called on Prime Minister Imran Khan in Ghotki.

During the meeting, matters pertaining to overall situation of Sindh and steps taken for welfare of the masses came under discussion.

Speaking on the occasion, the prime minister said exposing the corrupt elements is joint mission of PTI and the coalition parties. He urged the public representatives to play a proactive role in resolution of people’s problems.