ISLAMABAD – PPP legislator and chairman of the Rules, Procedures and Privileges Committee, Nadeem Afzal Chann, on Tuesday accused an FC commandant of killing a Baloch youth.
“I submitted the report with the House and also provided a copy to the interior minister about the killing of Saddam Baloch, who was killed by a serving FC commandant himself. Let me tell this House that this is the same mindset that was behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. But neither the House nor the government have the courage to make the report public,” the PPP leader said on a point of personal explanation.
Responding to questions raised by PML-N MNA and former Balochistan governor General (r) Abdul Qadir Baloch, Chann said he was brave enough to speak the truth and was not afraid of anyone.
He said the five percent elites of the country were a major reason for the country’s predicament.
“This is the same class that brings in Rehman Malik, Shoukat Aziz, etc, who have no link with the masses. This is the same force that produced Mujahideen and then killed them on the US orders. This is the same force which makes politicians fight each other,” he asserted. Chann said although the PPP government was in rule for the past three years, 37 percent of his own constituency’s population was dying of hepatitis.
“We have 154 generals in the army, yet nobody can even say the word ‘Pakistan’ in Balochistan. What purpose are they serving? We don’t have to fight wars with India. The government should tell the army chief that the army will be of no use if the country disintegrates,” Chann said.
Earlier, General (r) Qadir Baloch warned parliament to take notice of the deteriorating situation in Balochistan or be ready to face another tragedy.
“I urge the government to focus on Balochistan. The House should be informed about the mishandling of the issue of Shahzain Bugti’s arrest. If he was arrested on charges of possessing illegal arms, he should not have been shifted to a rest house and given protocol. Rather, he should have been treated as a criminal. But if the charges were wrong, he should not have been arrested at all,” he asserted.
“Even the chief minister and governor are not safe, they are attacked, yet no one is arrested. Innocent Punjabis are killed, but no action is taken. If someone is involved in criminal acts, he should be apprehended and placed behind the bars. But a government that failed to arrest the killers of its own leader can do nothing,” he said.
Sheikh Waqas Akram of the PML-Q said the state had failed in performing its duty in Balochistan; however, the ruling elites of Balochistan were equally responsible for the state of affairs in the province.
“Over the past 60 years, the Baloch ruling elite has exploited provincial resources. No Punjabi, Pashtun or Sindhi can be held responsible for the lack of development in Balochistan. Rather, it was the Baloch elite who compromised the province’s rights and remained involved in massive corruption,” he remarked.
