ISLAMABAD - Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid Thursday said that Parliament was the right forum to discuss issues for reforming the system in any institution. He said the present government has made a committee for electoral reforms and urged all the political parties including Pakistan People’s Party, Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf, Awami National Party and others to come forward with suggestions for reforming the system.
Pervez Rashid said that Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was working independently in the country due to the struggle made by all the political parties.
He said this after handing over electric wheelchair and laptop to a teenage victim of terrorism, Iftikhar Ahmad, who was rendered quadriplegic in a suicide attack in Peshawar last year.
To a question, he said that all the political parties should work for making the courts more efficient so that the problems of the people could be addressed without waiting for decades.
The minister said that there are applications in the election tribunal for addressing the complaints about last general elections. Pervez Rashid said that the election tribunal had disposed of many applications and cases but still the decisions on some petitions are pending.
To another question regarding the PTI’s long march, he said that holding protest rallies was the right of any citizen under the democratic system but the call of long march given by PTI was not the right decision during the NWA operation.
He said that PTI should focus on helping IDPs and other issues of KPK areas. He asked PTI to bring suggestions at the forum of Parliament so that the reforms could be made in any institution.
Pervaiz Rashid said that the 2013 general elections were conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner.
He claimed that the election was much better than the previous elections. He said that European Union, International Organizations and Observers teams including media had not reported any rigging or flaws in the previous elections.
He urged all the political parties including PTI to strengthen the democratic system and work for resolving the matters of the people. “We have accepted the mandate of other parties in the last elections (2013) and the other parties including PTI should respect the mandate of the PML-N,” he said.
To a question regarding security in the federal capital, he said that strict security measures have been taken to avoid any untoward incident during the long march.
He said that PML-N did not wish to topple the government in the KPK. He said that PML-N government wanted to ensure rule of law in the country.
Replying to a question regarding Musharraf case, he said that all the political parties, stakeholders, civil society and leaders of the national institutions wanted rule of law in the country and no one is exceptional under this law or Constitution. He said that the military establishment is working according to the Constitution of the country.
He said government fully acknowledges the sacrifices of its citizens in the war against terrorism and it would continue to come to aid of terror victims.