ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Sunday termed PTI chairman Imran Khan’s announcement of a long-march onto Islamabad on May 25 as an attempt to sabotage the government’s talks with International Monetary Fund (IMF) taking place on the same day.
In a statement, soon after the former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan announced holding of a long-march towards Islamabad on May 25, the Minister stated in categorical terms that it is up to the government and its coalition partners to decide about the next general elections and not Imran Khan.
“Listen, do whatever you want to do. You have lost the authority to decide about the elections. It is up to the government and its allies to decide,” she told Imran Khan, adding that the PTI chairman’s announcement of the long-march on May 25 is an attempt to sabotage Pakistan’s negotiations with the IMF.
She added that it is the sole prerogative of the coalition government to decide about elections. “He [Imran Khan] cannot bully the government to get announcement of the general elections at a time of his choice with his threats,” she added.
She added that Imran Khan is returning to Islamabad once again with a new ‘agenda of plunder after looting the country and its people for around four years.’
She stated that the PTI chairman might be coming to Islamabad to apologize to the nation for his ‘destructive failures, incompetence and corruption while in power’.
“What exactly is this person coming to Islamabad for? The person who destroyed national economy, stole people’s sugar, wheat, flour, medicine, gas, electricity and LNG; and who is the sole responsible for devaluation of the national currency from Rs 115 to Rs 189; who buried the country under Rs 45,000 billion fresh debt; crushed the nation under inflation and unemployment; lied to the people about 10 million jobs and 5 million homes; and who told the nation he did not care if edibles had become unaffordable under 16 percent inflation”, she further maintained.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022