Let the system get better, Khursheed pleads with army chief

ISLAMABAD: Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Syed Khursheed Shah on Tuesday appealed to the army chief General Raheel Sharif and other state institutions to let the system head towards an “improvement”.
Talking to newsmen in his chamber at the Parliament House, Khursheed justified the statement of the PPP Co-chairman and former President Asif Ali Zardari in which he had accused Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif of repeating the politics of the 1990s.
“Nawaz Sharif is directly responsible for what the federal departments are doing against the Sindh government. He attacked the PPP and Asif Ali Zardari only defended his party. Linking the PPP with terrorists is a shameful act,” he said.
Khursheed said the PPP did not support corruption but by accusing politicians of supporting terrorists, a new war had been waged.
“It is clearly indicated in the legislation against terrorism that action would be taken against terrorists and their supporters but instead action was started in Sindh only,” he complained.
Khursheed said he and Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah had contacted the prime minister six times and also Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and asked them if only Sindh was their target.
Khursheed said: “The two leaders were further asked why a PML-N minister caught on tape while laundering money and a Punjab minister openly supporting a terrorist outfit were not arrested. “The ball is now in the prime minister’s court and it’s up to him which direction he leads the situation to.”
Khursheed said he would ask the party leadership to protest and fight on the issue inside the assemblies. “We will fight this war inside parliament,” he said.
The opposition leader said Dr Asim Hussain was accused of funding the MQM. “If they believe MQM is a terrorist party, then they should have the courage to declare it terrorist and accept their resignations,” he added.
He also rejected the negligible cut in petroleum prices. “Full relief has not been passed on to the people after the prices of petroleum products nosedived on the international market,” he said.
To a question, he said when the PPP talked about the war with the opponents, it did not mean it would use guns but it would rather adhere to the law.
He once again demanded that the Election Commission members should resign ahead of the by-polls.