Zardari claims no Saudi NRO for Nawaz

LAHORE: Reiterating his support for PAT Chief Dr Tahirul Qadri in his struggle for justice in the Model Town case, former president Asif Zardari said the Sharifs cannot get any NRO this time.

Addressing a press conference with Qadri along with the Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Khursheed Shah at the Minhajul Quran Secretariat on Friday, Zardari said this time Saudi Arabia has not come out to facilitate an ‘NRO’ for the Sharifs and the trip of Sharif brothers to Jeddah aimed at protecting their foreign wealth and garnering the support of their foreign friends. He said the nation would not let this ‘joke’ happen and the Sharifs would not be allowed to sign any NRO. He said the PPP is siding with the PAT over its demand for justice in the Model Town case and would not make any compromises on this demand. The PPP would also endorse decisions to be taken by the All Parties Conference being held today (Saturday).

To a question, he said the PPP always raised voice against oppression. On the election front, all the parties have their ownplans and agendas. He repeated the demand for resignations of Shahbaz Sharif and Rana Sanaullah over their alleged involvement in the Model Town incident which, according to him, resulted in killing 14 and injuring nearly 100. He said a case should also be registered against Nawaz Sharif under section 302. Responding to a question over Pervez Musharraf’s allegations against him in connection with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, Zardari said: “The commando must show courage to return to Pakistan.” He said Musharraf was telling the nation about his backache but, at the same time, was seen dancing at various functions. He said he must show courage and face charges against him in Pakistan.

He said as the president of Pakistan, he surrendered all his powers to the parliament. No other head of state has done that before. On the other hand, Musharraf as the president enjoyed all powers for years and his prime ministers were mere ‘rubber stamps’. He said the wrong decisions of Nawaz Sharif always favoured Pervez Musharraf.

To another question related to the reconciliation policy of the PPP, he said his party wanted reconciliation for the sake of democracy, not to protect the corruption of Nawaz Sharif who has put Pakistan under heavy debts to be paid by the future generations.

Later, Qadri criticized Sharif brothers for their double standards, saying on the one hand, they said political issues should not be decided in the courts, but, on the other are contacting foreign powers for the settlement of issues they were confronting. Expressing his gratitude to Zardari for visiting the PAT Secretariat for the second time in a month, he said harmony existed between the PAT and the PPP over the PAT's demand for justice.

Zardari also had a one-on-one meeting with Qadri. The PPP delegation headed by Zardari, which called on Qadri, included Khursheed Shah, former Punjab governor Latif Khosa and Naveed Chaudhry.