CJP should take suo motu, says JI chief

Panama Leaks probe

LAHORE: Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan Ameer Senator Sirajul Haq has demanded Islamabad make arrangements for the release of hundreds of Pakistanis detained in jails of the US, India and other countries.

Addressing a press conference at Mansoora in the presence of the representatives of overseas Pakistanis from 20 countries of five continents, Siraj ul Haq said that around nine million overseas Pakistanis were the ambassadors of Islam and the country. He called upon the government to set up consulates in big cities of foreign countries.

Replying to a question, the JI chief said that the government was not ready for accountability, whereas, the masses, who were tired of corruption, wanted ruthless accountability. He said that if the government was adopting delaying tactics, the chief justice of Pakistan should take suo motu of the matter and set up a judicial commission for probe into Panama Leaks.

He reiterated his demand for the grant of voting right to the overseas Pakistanis before the 2018 elections. He said it was pity that the overseas Pakistanis sending remittances of billions of dollars to the country did not have any say in the formation of the government.

The JI chief said the government never tried to know the problems of the overseas Pakistanis nor considered its duty to end their difficulties. He said that taking overseas Pakistanis into confidence was essential for saving the country from being isolated.

Sirajul Haq said that the Pakistanis abroad were sick of the corruption, commissions and inefficiency of the Pakistani embassies abroad while the government was not giving any attention to the setting up of consulates in big cities aboard for their assistance. He said that the overseas Pakistanis had to pay a heavy fee for the issuance of new national identity cards and their renewal while they had to come to the country for renewal of their passports. 

Sirajul Haq said that overseas Pakistanis were rendering valuable services in the fields of education, health and business.  He said that the overseas Pakistanis were making investments in foreign countries in view of the rampant corruption in the country.

The JI chief also said that arresting the culprits of the 14 murders at Model Town was the government’s responsibility. He said it was a matter of shame that the killers of 14 innocent people in the Punjab capital could not be traced.