Divided politicians destined for disgrace: Fazl

KARACHI: President MMA Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday said that democracy in our country is very weak and the political system and politicians are helpless victims.

He said if the politicians failed to unify and agree on a common framework, they would be the biggest losers as there is revival of the the Seventies era. The JUI-F supremo was talking to newsmen in Karachi. He said institutions were not ready to adopt independent thinking, democracy is helpless and weak while everyone knows who takes important decisions. We have the world's weakest democracy, he said. He said all the national institutions, judiciary, election commission and the media are propagating hatred and animosity against the political system and politicians under different pretexts. He said by sowing hatred against the politicians, we are trying to weaken our political system.

He said recently a terrorist was apprehended planting a bomb at the Chief Minister’s House, KP, and alleged that the suspect was “freed by officials of an institution everybody knows about”. The powerful lobbies always try to undermine the political forces. He also blamed a section of the media for projecting a misleading viewpoint of “corrupt politicians”, instead of highlighting the real issues confronting the nation and the Ummah.

He said the NAB, during Musharraf’s tenure, had recorded large-scale recoveries from the corrupt. The largest recoveries were made from former generals and bureaucrats and politicians were third in line of the group who had stashed ill-gotten wealth, Fazl alleged. Despite this, only the politicians are targeted, he charged. This goes on to establish the fact that unless and until the politicians unite on a single platform, they will continue to be maligned. The MMA chief said the sole purpose of politics and government formation is the welfare and protection of larger national and ideological interests.

He said in the past, rulers from abroad were imposed on us to implement the international agenda. He charged that a certain group is propagating the viewpoint of Conservative Friends of Israel and has all the freedom to do so. He said our political, defence and economic institutions cannot take independent decisions and remain under the influence of IMF, UN, Security Council, EU and other international powers who dictate to us the policy framework. Fazl said our economy and budgets are determined by the IMF, which is very frustrating for the nation who want freedom from the clutches of this dominance, since the independence. Fazl said the global powers are keeping weaker countries in their stranglehold and do not let us act independently.

He said by reorganising and activating the MMA, we are trying to bring together all religio-political forces to carry out ideological politics. He said by accusing the Muslims of terrorism and radicalism, the Ummah has been fractured and pitted against one another. We have come to such a sorry pass that our own institutions are suspecting us, declaring us enemies which is causing widespread friction and due to which things cannot improve. The JUI-F chief said the religion has been restricted to worship.