Imran Khan, a former prime minister and the leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), has summoned the ruling coalition to a meeting to discuss when to hold general elections, emphasizing that his party would only wait until March.
Speaking to a private news station, the former premier declared that he would not dissolve the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies if the present government is prepared to hold elections by the end of March.
However, he asserted that his party will not settle on a time after March, and if the government disagrees, the assembly will be dissolved this month (December).
“We are ready to hold negotiations over the date of general elections,” the former prime minister said, citing the devastating economic situation as the reason behind PTI’s constant demand.
He pointed out that the nation’s debt was steadily increasing as the economy was becoming worse. In the end, he said,“The incumbent rules will run away in the end and the citizens will suffer,” he claimed.
Imran Khan issued a warning that if the government refused to hold elections in March, he would dissolve the Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies.
The PTI Chairman mentioned that Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Pervaiz Elahi had promised to carry out his instructions on the dissolution of the assembly.
“Pervaiz Elahi has given me the full authority to dissolve the assembly whenever I want,” he added.
Extension to EX-COAS Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa
The former prime minister said that it was “a mistake” for his administration to extend Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa’s term as Chief of Army Staff (COAS).
Imran Khan called the decision a mistake and stated that no one in the army should ever receive an extension. He added that the extension to the previous COAS Bajwa was inevitable and stated that “when we came into power, our government was confronting various issues.”
“I would trust whatever ex-COAS General Bajwa said. I would tell him that both of us are thinking about the country; our only purpose was to save the country,” he said, adding that he didn’t know how he was being lied to and betrayed.
He added that, due to worries, his informant from the Intelligence Bureau (IB) would alert him verbally rather than in writing after receiving a report about a game being played.
‘NAB wasn’t in my control’
Imran Khan remarked in response to a query on the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) that initially he didn’t understand why the powerful weren’t held accountable. However, he continued, “I later realized that the bureau wasn’t in my control.
The PTI Chairman continued, “It was under someone else’s control and the issue was that they didn’t view corruption as a terrible practise.”
Accusing Zardari’s of being involved in corruption cases in the past, Imran Khan said, “It is a sign of doomsday that Zardari is saying that I will be sent to jail by NAB.”
Regarding his lower number of seats in Sindh, the PTI leader promised to wage a campaign there and defeat Zardari.
