We must break the beggar’s bowl: Nawaz

Pakistan should stop accepting aid before it is suspended, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif said on Monday. According to Online, Nawaz stressed that in order to restore the country’s integrity “the government should say no to aid before those giving it to us think of stopping it”. He was talking to reporters outside the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. He said the government would have to make a cut into its expenditures if it wanted to boost the country’s economy.
“A 50 percent reduction in the expenditures can boost the economy,” he said. “The budget of the army and the ISI should be passed by the parliament just like in all other civilised countries,” he said, adding that it was his mistake that during his government he could not bring the army and the ISI under parliament. There should be no parallel governments and policies in a country, he said, adding that India was not Pakistan’s number one enemy and that policy had to change as it was harming the country in a lot of ways.
“I am not targeting the Pakistan Army but want to make Pakistan into a stronger country. Only democratic governments have saved and served the country. How can we expect those who have no respect for the constitution and law to respect the country. Democratic government should and must be powerful and every institution must work under it,” he said. “After the Abbottabad raid certain quarters asked me to demand the president and the prime minister’s resignations but very few people wanted resignation from ‘the other side’,” Nawaz said in a clear reference to the military. The PML-N chief said it was for first time in the history of Pakistan that an independent enquiry commission would be formed, adding that action would be taken against whoever was held responsible, be it the government or the army. “We extended our cooperation to the government but it was very unfair to us.
I was disqualified, the Punjab government was suspended and governor’s rule was imposed. But I still didn’t get angry with Asif Ali Zardari because the condition of the country did not allow that,” he said. Nawaz said “We must set our house in order before pointing fingers at others. There is need for self-accountability.” To a question, he said he was not aware that agencies were behind the PPP and the PML-Q alliance, however, he added that it was a known fact that the agencies had tried to bring the PML on one platform a few months ago but had completely failed. Nawaz demanded an enquiry into the May 12, 2007 army operation against Nawab Akbar Bugti and said the situation in Balochistan would not return to normal until Bugti’s murderers were punished. He also criticised the judiciary saying that it had validated dictatorship and given authority to a dictator to make changes in the constitution.