Siraj accuses govt of patronising sugar and medicines mafia

Chief of Jamaat-e-Islami, Senator Sirajul Haq, warned the government the government that furious public crowds could march to their palaces and besiege them if rulers did not mend their ways and listen to the people. "At present, the masses are only staging protest but if the rulers don't heed, the furious crowds may march to their palaces and besiege them," he said, talking to the media after speech at the concluding session of the 5-day JI workshop for party workers at Mansoora, here.
Siraj said that arrogance of the rulers was pushing the people towards protest and voice of protest could not be suppressed by placing curbs on the media and harassing the anchors.
"When a government begins strangulating the media, its downfall starts," he said. The JI chief further said that playing cricket and governing the country were two different things. He said the government had crumbled within one year. He said that the Prime Minister was not aware of gravity of current situation and was taking decisions only on hearsay due to which everything was left half-way. He said that the JI was the only party that was playing the role of real opposition.
"Instead of listening to the cries of the oppressed masses, the rulers are laughing at them. The princes residing in Islamabad don't know people are unable to make both ends meet," he said, reminding the PTI-led government it had promised to create 10 million jobs but till now it had snatched jobs of 0.5 million people.
Similarly, he cited, the government had promised to build 5 billion houses but thousands of people had been deprived of their homes. "It is due to incompetence of the government that an international court had imposed a heavy penalty on Pakistan in the Reko Diq case. Had the government hired competent lawyers, the situation would have been different, he said.
Siraj said that the government was patronising mafias by soaring prices of sugar, cement and medicines. He said those who had voted and supported the PTI now worried as they see 120 per cent failure of the government policies. He said the government had become nervous over complete commercial shutdown by the traders and was saying that political parties were behind the strike. He brushed aside this impression as wrong. "Even businessmen, who had voted for the PTI with great expectations, were seen in the forefront of the strike," he noted.