Doubts about polls should end: Siraj

LAHORE : Jamaat-e-Islami Ameer Senator Sirajul Haq has said that after the passage of the bill concerning the de-limitation, all apprehensions about elections should come to an end and political parties should cooperate with Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for holding elections on schedule.

He was talking to the media on Saturday at the residence of Second Lieutenant Abdul Moeed Shaheed Shaheed who was martyred in a terrorist attack in Fata last week.

Sirajul Haq deplored that former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was protesting the court verdict against his ouster. He advised him to accept the verdict with an open heart to prove his faith in the supremacy of judiciary. He also demanded the ECP ensure electoral reforms before 2018 elections so that elections did not remain a game confined to capitalists. He urged the political parties not to allow corrupt elements enter their ranks and kick out the black sheep who considered politics as a means to make money. He said it was high time the political parties took serious steps to facilitate the election of honest and competent persons to the parliament.

Siraj paid tributes to the armed forces officers and personnel laying down their lives for the country’s defense. Sirajul Haq expressed sorrow that Pakistan was the biggest loser in the US war on terror as over 100,000 people, including armed forces personnel, were martyred and the country suffered financial loss of over $ 100 billion. Despite that the US president and vice-president were giving threats to Pakistan. He said the rulers who feared the US had badly disappointed the masses. He said the government’s failure to present the Fata reforms bill proved its inefficiency and added that the Fata issue should be resolved in line with the wishes of the tribal people. He said the Muslim rulers should sit together and work out a common line of action for the liberation of Qibla-e-Awwal.

Meanwhile, JI Secretary General Liaqat Baloch said the US arrogance and selfishness had reached its peak and US President Trump’s policies were a big cause of US isolation in the world. In a statement, he demanded Washington withdraw its undemocratic and anti-Islam decision of declaring Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Referring to the US vice-president’s uncalled remarks about Pakistan in Kabul, Baloch said the US had badly failed in Afghanistan and its strategy had caused anarchy and terrorism all over the world especially in South Asia. He said world peace would remain a dream unless the Kashmir and Palestine issues were resolved. He urged Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to call a special parliament session to discuss the changing US attitude and the increasing threats to the country’s security.