Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) leader Asad Umar on Wednesday blatantly questioned the Finance Minister Ishaq Dar about the reasons for his continuing loyalties with the Sharif family even after the eye-opening JIT report.
Addressing a press conference in the capital, he said it was in the best interests of the prime minister to resign, given the quagmire they are facing.
He said that he is not asking this question in a personal capacity as he has a good working relationship with the finance minister.
“The prime minister has been the chairman and paid employee of his son’s company. The documents and affidavits the Sharifs submitted to the JIT proved to be fake,” Umar said, adding that the Sharif clan would not have “faced this embarrassment if the PM had resigned 15 months ago”.
Taking an aim at Ishaq Dar, the PTI leader called on the minister to step down from his ministerial position.
“Dar sahib, your statement in the Hudaibiya Paper Mills case, given under oath, proved to be true. You appointed your friend as the SECP chairman, and he is now facing an FIR on the Supreme Court’s orders,” he said.
“Do you really want to hold on to your position, Dar sahib? For how long will you keep defending, facilitating looters?” Umar questioned.
The PTI leader then went on to say that Dar, by hurling ‘personal attacks’ at Imran Khan, had instead ended up boosting the PTI chairman’s respect among the public.
“Dar sahib, you said that Imran Khan used to sit outside your office for donations. He did it for the sake of the poor, not for himself,” Umar remarked.
Responding to a question on how the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project might be affected by a regime change, if any, Umar said all political parties support CPEC.
“CPEC is not dependent on any government. China remains the closest friend of Pakistan, irrespective of who is in power here,” he assured.
He also said that the JIT should be applauded for showing the bravery that it did by coming out with this result.
Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Tuesday had said that the JIT report had glaring gaps in it, claiming it to be an international conspiracy against the government.
Another PTI leader, Shafqat Mehmood, who was also present at the press conference today, said that the PM should step down because his capacity to serve as a prime minister has diminished due to the JIT’s result.
