Minister accuses Islamic country of destabilising Muslim world

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada has accused an Islamic country government of creating instability across the Muslim world, including Pakistan, through distribution of money for promoting its ideology. The statement has not been endorsed by the Foreign Office.
Addressing a two-day ‘Ideas Conclave’ organised by the Jinnah Institute in Islamabad the minister said ‘the time has come to stop the influx of that Islamic country’s money into Pakistan.’ He also blasted his own government for approving military courts in the presence of an ‘independent and vibrant judiciary’ and said that military courts reflect ‘weak and coward leadership’. “Such cowardly leadership has no right to stay in power,” Pirzada added.
In her opening remarks, chairperson of Jinnah Institute Ms Sherry Rehman said the two-day conference would deliberate upon new ideas needed for a progressive and better Pakistan.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader and member National Assembly (MNA) Shafqat Mehmood said that the government has failed to address the problems being faced by the common man. Awami National Party (ANP) leader Afrasiab Khan Khattak expressed regret over military courts and said their establishment ‘has eroded democracy’. He called upon the democratic elements to play their role in reversing the 21st constitutional amendment. Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Farooq Sattar supported the military courts, saying there is no other option to deal with the terrorists.
Commerce minister Khurram Dastgir Khan observed that for an elected government to deliver a modicum of security is needed to ensure that it will not be destabilised.
He said that lawmakers have little incentive to do legislation. Voters judge them on the basis of how much patronage they can deliver. “We are answerable to the people. No general would stand up here and take your criticism,” said Dastgir. He further added that there is no excuse for not holding local bodies elections. The two-day Ideas Conclave 2015 attracted a large number of high ranking politicians, technocrats and industry experts to discuss some of the country’s most pressing and intractable issues.
Ms. Sherry Rehman, in her opening remarks spoke on the increasing ‘recoil from democracy’ evidenced in younger Pakistanis, and stressed the need for empowering the country’s youth to have a relationship with the state. She also noted the growing capacity of civil society to articulate messages for change, although she cautioned that civil society is a partner of democracy, not its prime agent. Ms. Rehman then moderated the day’s first session, titled “Sustaining Pakistan’s Democratic Transition.” Dr. Farooq Sattar of MQM claimed that military courts were undesirable yet unavoidable. Amidst frequent power cuts within and long queues at petrol stations around the city, the day’s second session, titled “Unbuckling the Pakistani economy’s straitjacket”, gained further poignancy. It featured several architects of Pakistan’s economic infrastructure, including commerce minister Khurram Dastagir Khan, former SBP governor Ishrat Hussain, former finance minister Dr. Salman Shah and former government advisors Sakib Sherani and Ashfaque H. Khan. The speakers dissected Pakistan’s governance crises from several angles, with Ishrat Hussain beginning by comparing the utter lack of meritocracy in the civil services with the relative presence of it in the military. Underlining his support for democracy, he pointed out that such discrepancies led to a perception that the military was better suited for governing the country. Sakib Sherani asked for a wider view of the problem, arguing that rather than a civil-military imbalance, the greater issue was the presence of an ‘entrenched, self-serving elite’. He criticised Parliament for abdicating its role in debating economic policy, a thought echoed by Ashfaque Khan. The latter was also forceful in denouncing the nepotism in government, which spared ministers and officials from accountability. Dr. Salman Shah outlined the need for a grand economic vision, arguing that a country of Pakistan’s size and stature should be looking to join the G20 by 2050. Khurram Dastagir said that reform was painful and required sacrifices, but in response to a question said that his party’s opposition to holding local bodies’ elections was “indefensible”. He also called for an end to turning towards “philosopher kings” and preached accepting the mandate of the people. The day’s final session, titled “New Media: Disrupting the Status Quo and Creating Noise” was moderated by renowned journalist and anchor Nasim Zehra. She characterised the double-edged nature of new media by noting how it had made public discourse increasingly volatile by collapsing hierarchies and forcing authorities to be held accountable. Each of the sessions was followed by lively Q&A sessions, with the PPP’s Nadim Afzal Chan in particular delivering a rousing riposte against the military’s involvement in politics.