Moot on terrorism without Imran futile: Waqas

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday emphatically said that organizing a national conference on national security and terrorism without the involvement of PTI founder Imran Khan would be a futile exercise. PTI Information Secretary Sh Waqas Akram insisted that the party supremo was the only leader trusted by the people, with a widespread and diverse following, and was capable of uniting them like beads on a rosary.

In a statement here, he criticised the government which, he alleged, was devoid of public mandate, and urged its myopic and narrow-minded brigade of ministers to demonstrate some sagacity and wisdom. He emphasized that Pakistan stood at a critical juncture and required a healing touch to extinguish the flames engulfing the nation. He condemned the reckless statements made by ministers, calling them both criminal and disgraceful. He asserted that those who exploited the army and martyrs for their vile politics were not only despicable and ignorant but also utterly callous and shameless, posing a grave threat to the country and society. Waqas said the government’s politicization of terrorism and internal security was inadvertently aiding terrorist strategies. He contended that the surge and spread of terrorism were directly linked to electoral manipulation, and those who stole the mandate must be held accountable by the nation. He asserted that the illegitimate government and its cronies could neither absolve themselves of responsibility for their failure to prevent the Jaffar Express tragedy nor for dragging the country into a whirlwind of terrorism and anarchy. He said they could not deceive the nation by spewing venom and engaging in mudslinging against his party and its leadership.

Therefore, Waqas emphasized, it was high time to convene a national conference with participation from all political parties, nationalist leaders, intellectuals, media representatives, the legal fraternity, religious leaders, and scholars from all schools of thought. The conference, he suggested, should focus on identifying the root causes of terrorism and formulating a comprehensive, collective strategy to rid the country of this menace. However, he regretted that a lack of seriousness on the part of the central and Balochistan governments was evident from their refusal to acknowledge the ground realities and trying to paint a rosy picture of the most-backward and worst-neglected province. Meanwhile, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said the DG ISPR held a very good press conference on the Jaffar Express incident, as the security forces played a very good role and averted a big tragedy. Talking to the media here, he praised the security forces for taking timely action, otherwise another tragedy like the Army School could have happened. He said the security forces took timely action and saved the lives.

About the party’s negotiations with the government, he explained that they formed a committee for negotiations on December 4, the first meeting was held on December 23, the second on January 2 and the third on January 16.

“We had placed two demands before the government. The government asked for demands in writing, so we gave them in writing. We can’t be blamed for failure of talks but the government side,” he said, adding that the PTI founder had said if the government expressed its willingness to form a commission, they would sit with them (government). He said NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq knew that “this opportunity was not wasted by us, the government wasted it”. He pointed out that the party founder had not been introduced to a single person for six months and that Imran Khan did not even talk to his children regularly. “We have repeatedly said that this is a violation of court orders and human rights. The PTI is not a party that imposes restrictions on people, there is democracy in our party, on whatever point a person wants to talk, he does it openly, whatever decision we make, everyone in the party accepts it,” he said.