ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said on Wednesday that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), an alliance of opposition parties, was “a facilitator and respite” for Prime Minister Imran Khan and not a challenge for him.

Addressing a press conference, he said that the present opposition was not a challenge for political heavy weight Prime Minister Imran Khan but “a respite and facilitator” for Khan.

“They (the Opposition) was not a challenge for Khan as they have no such a capabilities,” he said, adding he was saying this as political worker and not as an interior minister.

About the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) scheduled rally during the appearance of the PML-N Vice President, Maryam Nawaz, before the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) in a corruption case on March 26, he said that the PML-N did not want to demonstrate its power to Prime Minister Khan but they wanted to show it to the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

Rashid said that Maryam had secured protective bail from the court for herself to avoid arrest and was also calling people to participate in her rally and reach NAB, Lahore office.

They will be exposed on March 26 and people will see that how many people participate in the PML-N rally, he said.

As per my political vision, he said that the PML-N could do whatever they want but the PPP would not tender resignations.

“I feel sorry for the PDM chief, Fazl-ur-Rehman, as on one day he (Fazl) was on one side, and the other day on the other side,” he said, adding that Fazl’s politics was hanging in the air.

The minister said that his ministry had approved deployment of Rangers at Lahore during appearance of Maryam before the NAB following the request of the Punjab government.

The minister appealed to the residents of Lahore that Covid-19 positivity ratio has increased up to 12 to 14 percent; therefore, everyone should take extraordinary precautionary measures.

Rashid said that he had never seen in the world of politics attacking of courts. During the pervious appearance of Maryam, media had shown stones and sticks being transported on vehicles, he said.

“A genuine politicians does not make public his shield and he act as a shield for public,” he said.

Without naming Nawaz Sharif, he said that you need to become Imam Khomeini for calling public to participate in their rallies while sitting abroad.

You (Nawaz) are neither Mao nor Karl Marx, he said, adding that he (Nawaz) fooled the entire nation including him and went abroad.

He said that the district administration had earlier announced a local holiday on the eve of Pakistan Day parade to be held on March 25 (today), and today, the Interior Ministry announced holiday for secretariat as it did not come under the domain of the local administration.

The minister said that he agreed with the perception that no recovery of corruption money had been made from big fish in the fight against corruption and recoveries had only been made from the small thieves.

The minister said there were serious threats of terrorism in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, and Islamabad, and there was a “red alert”.

The minister said that the government was planning to set up a media city and his ministry had issued directives to the Capital Development Authority (CDA) in that regard.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021