ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said a decision of choice will be made in the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) trial against him as it will be monitored by a judge and appeal will also go to him.
Nawaz Sharif said he wouldn’t sit at home after returning to Lahore but would strive for initiation of grand debate on establishment of direction of the country and system to rid it from disrespect of people’s mandate. He said he is not doing a power show. He said he has been sent home and he was going there.
“It would be a mission higher than personal interests. I am going to continue politics and work for the ideals of the motherland with even greater zeal,” he said while talking to foreign media correspondents here at the Punjab House.
The former PM vowed that people of the country haven’t accepted the verdict of the Supreme Court regarding his disqualification.
Nawaz said a petition seeking review of his disqualification will shortly be filed with the Supreme Court, with a plea for the formation of a larger bench to hear the case.
He regretted that none of the prime ministers could ever complete their constitutional term in office and held the position for one and a half years on average while dictators
ruled the country for decades. He said that the Constitution was abrogated again and again but the judiciary not only always legitimised the military rule, but even went to the extent of giving military dictators the right to amend the Constitution at their whims.
“Countries cannot be run in a way like this,” he remarked. Referring to his proposal for holding grand debate, Nawaz said it’s time for a grand debate in and outside the Parliament to not only find answer to the question why it happened, but also to define a clear way forward. He said lack of continuity was the biggest reason for the country lagging behind.
He said Bangladesh’s exports were more than Pakistan. He said all sectors of economy witnessed improvement in the last four years and the energy crisis was being effectively addressed when he has been sent packing. He said he had once been removed as prime minister by the then president under the now defunct Article 58(2)(b) of the Constitution and during his second term he was made a hijacker by the then military ruler Pervez Musharraf. He said now he has been disqualified by the judiciary on allegation never mentioned in the petition and having no relevance with the Panama scam.
“Why should I have disclosed the salary I had never withdrawn from my son’s company,” he said. Nawaz said the prime minister elected with the votes of 200 million electorates must not be meted out such a treatment. He cited the income tax laws and stated that a salary which has not been received couldn’t be viewed as ‘asset.’
“Had I received the salary, I would have surely shown it as an asset in my returns,” Nawaz said. He said elected prime ministers have been hanged, consigned to prison and sent in exile in the past. He warned of a threat to the country if such trends were not curbed.
“This is time to find solution to this national challenge,” he remarked. Nawaz indicated that he will stay in active politics. He confidently said that his innings hasn’t come to an end. “When I was sent in exile by Pervez Musharraf, many believed that it was end of my political career. But it did not happen, and will not happen now as well,” he said. Nawaz said all his efforts were meant for the country and not for his person. He said he had faced hardships including solitary confinement during Musharraf’s days in power, but these sacrifices should benefit the country. He said the petition against him in Panama case had first been rejected by terming it frivolous, but was admitted for hearing few weeks after. He said the composition of Joint Investigation Team (JIT) was controversial. He said the way the JIT worked was known to all. He said he had been advised by many not to go to the JIT, with some suggesting that he should not go as prime minister. He said he decided to go to the JIT as his hands and conscience was clean. He said had he stepped down that time, it would have been seen as admission of guilt. He said a new precedence was being set by filing references against him on the matters that relate to his family business and domestic matters. He said the NAB has never entertained such cases.
“Why this new precedence is being set,” the ex-premier asked. He said another deviation from normal practices was that a judge was being appointed to supervise the matter that meant that a sword will keep on hanging over the NAB. “They will award the sentence and appeal will also lie before them,” he said.
Drawing a comparison between democratic dispensations and military rules, he said key issues facing the country have been resolved by politicians. He said politicians started the nuclear programme and created Pakistan. He said wars have always been fought during dictatorial regimes. He didn’t point finger at the military establishment when many asked him to disclose as to who was conspiring against him. When a pointed question was asked if the Army was angry with him for some foreign policy issues, he said, “It would be appropriate if we continue focusing on what we are discussing.”
About the foreign policy of his party’s government, he said the PML-N wants peace and settlement of outstanding issues including the Kashmir imbroglio through talks. He said the Kashmir issue should be resolved in accordance with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions. He said peace in the region was linked with peace in Afghanistan, which will also have a positive impact on Pakistan. He said his party had not only signed the Charter of Democracy (COD), but also initiated it. He said imposition of governor’s rule in Punjab during the PPP’s days in power was against the spirit of the Charter. He claimed that Musharraf had tried to sign an NRO with him as well but he refused.
Asked if he will ask Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to start the process for issuance of red warrants against General Musharraf, he merely held responsibility for allowing him to go abroad on the judiciary. When a questioner asked if he had taken up the matter with the then Army Chief General Raheel Sharif when Musharraf revealed that he had been facilitated by the army, he said such matters were becoming part of record and one day those responsible will be held accountable. He said he does not want a confrontation between institutions and it was his desire to see respect for mandate of the people, rule of law and the Constitution.
Undeterred by a bomb blast in Lahore a day earlier, the former PM is firm on his plan to travel to Lahore with a motorcade via GT Road today (Wednesday). “I will not wait for the situation to calm down as I have all the right to go home,” he said. Nawaz said he has never tried to create anarchy, be it the days of PTI’s sit-in in Islamabad or matters relating to the Panama case or attempts to lock down the federal capital. Reports suggested that he had been persuaded to cancel his plan not only by his brother Shahbaz Sharif, but also by others including incumbent Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal and his predecessor Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, but he refused.
