Ahsan condemns NAB cases against Shahbaz

Secretary General Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Ahsan Iqbal has strongly condemned the cases 'motivated by vengeance' against PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif and alleged the PTI government for intentionally escalating tensions with the opposition to jeopardize the extension issue of Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

Talking to the media persons after a joint meeting of the opposition parties, Ahsan Iqbal said that NAB did not learn anything after being rebuked by the Supreme Court for challenging Shahbaz's bail on Tuesday morning. He said after being shown the door by the top court, the Bureau had cooked up a new set of baseless allegation on properties which the PML-N President had already declared along with their money trail. In fact one of the properties seized by NAB is inherited from Shehbaz's father, he added.

Ahsan said NAB after its exhaustive witch-hunt could not find a single dime of corruption on Shahbaz. This is why the Chief Justice, while rejecting their petition to withdraw his bail, said the case clearly showed that Shahbaz had actually acted extremely responsibly with prudence to ensure due process in the matter, he claimed. Ahsan said, "This fresh wave of cases is another chapter of the vicious political victimization campaign by Imran Khan Niazi."

He claimed the PML-N leaders over the five years of their government completed a record Rs 3,200 billion worth of projects, built over 2,000 kilometers record roads, added a record 11,000 Megawatts of electricity to the national grid and saved over Rs 700 billion in public projects.

The former minister said he is sensing a sinister plan by Imran Khan and his regime who are intentionally creating friction with the opposition ahead of the crucial legislation regarding the extension of the Army Chief. He said he had already expressed his reservation of the seemingly intentional mishandling of the extension issue by Imran Khan which caused international embarrassment.

"The joint opposition in its meeting has decided it will not engage or negotiate with any of the government ministers, advisors or representatives over any issue. The opposition would only negotiate on any matter with Prime Minister Imran Niazi if he chooses to. In case Niazi continues down his road o vengeance and arrogance, the opposition will negotiate with the next Prime Minister," Ahsan said.

He went on to say that the incompetence, arrogance and stubbornness of Imran Khan has already cost the country too much. He pointed out that the PM did neither even agree to sit down with the opposition symbolically when India attacked Pakistan, nor did he once sit down with the political leadership of Pakistan after India annexed Occupied Kashmir and imprisoned over 8 million Kashmiris.

Ahsan said, "The Army Chief had to fill in for the stubbornness of the arrogant and incompetent Prime Minister who is incapable of forming even the bleakest of consensus because of his egomaniacal stubbornness. The COAS sat down with the opposition leaders over the matter while the so-called Prime Minister refused to engage."

The PML-N secretary general said the joint opposition is united in its stance that this Prime Minister has compromised the honor and sanctity of national institutions and the country. He has directed his entire team to target the opposition to brazenly in an effort to impede a possible consensus over matters of crucial national interest including the Army Chief's extension. He also pointed out that the NAB chief talked about a new wave of accountability that would also hold the government accountable, but it appears that that wave has once against turned its tide upon the opposition to create friction before the COAS legislation.

He pointed out how he too is being targeted by over the Narowal stadium project which was started before the PML-N tenure and he finished it in the best way possible. However the obliteration of that stadium where Pakistan played an international match, by this PTI regime is being ignored. He called for an across the board accountability and an inquiry into the destruction of the stadium by the criminal negligence of the PTI regime which has cost the taxpayer millions of rupees.