LAHORE – Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif said on Monday forming a government with the Chaudhrys (Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi) was like a curse so the coalition with the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) was out of question.
Addressing PML-N party workers from Gujranwala and Rawalpindi divisions at his Model Town residence, Nawaz said, “We will continue per our routine in Punjab while proving its strength in the House.” He said there was no room for supporters of dictators in the PML-N, adding that “we don’t want unrest and anarchy in the country”.
Nawaz said Pakistan was passing through a critical juncture and a rational approach was vital to steer the country out of the crises. He claimed that he had refused the suggestion to form a government with the support of the PML-Q at the time when the governor rule had been imposed in Punjab, adding, “the PML-N party will not form an alliance with the PML-Q.”
He said the military’s duty was to guard the country’s borders, not to partake in politics. Calling PPP leader Zulifqar Mirza’s speech “immoral and unethical”, Nawaz said even the people of Sindh would not like such remarks that were passed by Mirza.
“The PML-N will not return the same coins but will definitely reply to Zulifqar Mirza in a decent manner,” he said. Criticising the government’s poor performance, he said “the PML-N cannot continue with a failed government… Maximum cooperation has been ensured to the PPP but all the sincere efforts have been wasted by its leadership,” he said.
Nawaz underlined the need for “ruthless accountability” for eradication of corruption from the country. “I should be accountable, if I do wrong,” he said, adding, “We have to be self sufficient for the prosperity and sovereignty of the country as the image of a borrower is not good in the comity of nations.”
On the ongoing economic condition, he said the country should bid farewell to begging and seeking financial help. To a question about former president Pervez Musharraf, Nawaz said he was not happy with Musharraf’s self-exile.
Shujaat responds: Commenting on Nawaz’s statement, PML-Q President Shujaat Hussain said that Nawaz must keep in mind that arrogance and conceit were a curse. Warning the rulers in Punjab, he said that no government could go a long way relying on support from gamblers and gamers, adding that “a downfall will certainly hit them soon”.
Pakistan Muslim League Likeminded Steering Committee Chairman Khurshid Mahmood Kasuri said that the PML-N leadership should show flexibility in its attitude, otherwise it would be harmful.
