ISLAMABAD - Pakistan People’s Party leader Senator Rehman Malik yesterday asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to surrender and visit Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan’s place to unlock the persistent political deadlock.
Addressing a news conference here, the former interior minister said Sharif had to do something ‘really fast’ to dodge a ‘national disaster.’
“If Sharif visits Imran it won’t make a big difference to him but it will make a hell of a difference for the country. The situation can change dramatically and the deadlock can end,” he said.
PTI is set to storm the federal capital on November 2 to ‘force’ PM Sharif to present himself for accountability or quit.
Imran claims his struggle is not meant for a third force to step in but insists Sharif himself will be responsible for any threat to democracy.
The cricketer-turned-politician also blasted the PPP for supporting the government against the PTI march alleging the main opposition party was itself tainted with corruption and was trying to hide behind the government.
Senator Malik said the PTI and the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) will be responsible for any ‘national disaster’ as this persistent uncertainty could result in ‘anything.’
The PPP leader said Pakistan needed a political ‘Zarb-e-Azb’ to end the crises and strengthen democracy.
“These fights and leaks after leaks could leak the democracy itself. Nawaz Sharif and company should accept Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s four proposals to end this impasse,” he said.
Malik said the PPP was not a friendly opposition nor it was involved in any corruption but was sincere with the democratic system.
“They have investigated us, victimised us but found nothing. The PPP is not saving anything but democracy,” he maintained.
Malik said he was feeling pain and “warning those who are not understanding the volatile situation emerging because of political deadlock in the country and inflexibility by government and PTI.”
He said the PPP had rendered numerous sacrifices for the sake of democracy and “today in the given circumstances we need unity to counter the real enemies like India and terrorists.”
He advised the PML-N and the PTI to take popular decisions in the interest of the country as “we have many other issued to attend especially to counter India and terrorists, and to uplift Pakistan in international community.”
He said Bilawal’s four points - to re-constitute a parliamentary committee on national security, to pass Panama bill drafted by PPP, to implement the resolution regarding China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and to immediately appoint a foreign minister – were all a solution to the political stalemate.
“We are facing Indian ongoing unprovoked aggression across the Line of Control, at this point political polarization is suicidal. We fight for democracy when it is not there but when we have democracy, some elements try to derail it,” he said.
Malik said that the parliament was the symbol and icon of the democracy where the people of Pakistan “send us for the resolution of their problems but unfortunately many politicians do not use parliament to redress their issues and prefers street agitations,” he contended.
He asked if there was any provision in the constitution of Pakistan to seize the capital or block the movement of the people.
“I have a question that what is the definition of an umpire that is being frequently mentioned by a political party, the people of Pakistan are eager to know it,” he added.
Malik said in view of the situation, “I call upon the President and Prime Minister of Pakistan to immediately call a joint session of Parliament on the current political crisis and deadlock and I recommend that the said joint session of Parliament should be taken serious by both the government and opposition and it must continue till the solution of current crisis and political deadlock. I appeal Imran Khan to participate in the joint session of Parliament if President summons it.”
Meanwhile, PPP Senator Farhatullah Babar said the ball was in the court of Prime Minister Sharif to extricate the nation out of the dark shadows of an impending political implosion before the threatened lockout on November 2 of Islamabad by Imran but it required that the premier listened to reason and acted decisively.
Addressing a seminar here on the ‘current political situation - the way forward,’ the PPP leader said the PM should announce taking effective measures like endorsing the opposition sponsored Bill in the Senate to pursue inquiry in the Panama Papers to its logical conclusion.
“Second, issues in civil-military disconnect be addressed by urgently setting up a parliamentary committee on national security, promised at the time of the recent All Parties Conference on Kashmir. Third, decision making be institutionalized by appointing a full time foreign minister,” he added.
The lawmaker said that Imran Khan had laid bare his cards and declared that the siege will continue till the Prime Minister resigned otherwise the whole cabinet will have to go and fresh elections held.
He has also warned that the sit-in will continue at all cost and that the PM will be responsible if the democratic system got derailed.
Babar said that there were two options available to the government. “It may sit back and watch it fizzle out as at the time of the August 2014 sit-in,” the lawmaker said.
However, he said, the problem with this option is that the previous sit-in was professed to be peaceful while this one is threatened to be a total lockout of the federal capital.
“The other option is to pre-empt the sit-in by mass arrests and sealing the entry points to the capital. The problem with this option is that the success this strategy requires full backing of the establishment. It is difficult to assert that the establishment is willing to bail out Nawaz Sharif,” he said.
The PPP legislator said that holding of protest demonstrations was a democratic right of a political party but blockading the city and shutting government business was not and the PPP did not support such an extreme step.