Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan has said that devolution system has spread corruption at the grassroots level, which has created a 'bazaar' of councillors and Nazims whose loyalties were being bought by 'corrupt candidates' of district Nazims, backed by the government.
While addressing a press conference here on Thursday Imran further said that Nazim candidates with criminal and notorious background were 'investing' millions of rupees in the third phase of local body polls. "It was obvious when these people come in to power they would use all corrupt means recover their 'investment with profit'; I can say this with firm conviction that Rs 100-120 million were being spent by district Nazims in the third phase of the LB polls," he added.
The PTI Chairman blamed the 'Roshan-Khiyal' Musharraf government for giving air to corruption and crime in the country; in fact General Musharraf has destroyed all national institutions, including devolution system, to maintain power in his sole hands.
He pointed out that the Public Accounts Committee Chairman unearthed misappropriation of Rs 5 billion district funds by the previous district Nazims, but ironically the same people were permitted to contest the LB polls again. "A Federal Minister has levelled an allegation against the District Nazim of Mianwali for embezzling Rs 120 million and the irony of fate was that the same person is re-contesting the election for the same slot and showering money to win loyalties," he added.
While quoting Punjab Education Minister Imran Masood, the PTI Chairman said that the Q-League Minister has admitted that education funds transferred to the districts were misused by the Nazims. He further said that Rs 200 stipend announced by the government for girls of class 6 and 7 amounts to Rs 6 billion, in Mianwali not a single girl received the stipend.
The government should hold an inquiry in to the matter and unearth the corruption, he added.
Imran was of the view that all the political measures taken by General Musharraf were not for the love of the country, but to stay in power. "In fact by creating a fleet of his 'favourite' Nazims, he was preparing a ground for the next general elections through whom he would manipulate the elections. If the General was sincere with the country, he would have permitted direct elections of district Nazim who would have been answerable to the people.
Instead he introduced indirect election, so that he could hand pick his own men," he added.
To a question he said that after naked rigging in the first and second phases of LB polls, the opposition was united and were of the firm view that no fair and transparent elections would be held under the existing Election Commission. He said that the opposition has decided to table a constitutional amendment package, which would demand impartial fresh general elections under an independent election commission, and drafting of it was still in the process.
"If the government was people-friendly, as it reiterates so often, it should feel no threat from the constitutional amendment package.
However, if it were rejected in the Assembly, they would hold countrywide public protests. En bloc resignations from the Assemblies was also under consideration," he maintained.
On the issue of presidential system, he said that its introduction in the existing constitutional framework would change the spirit of the 1973 Constitution and the present Assemblies do not have mandate to do so. Thus, he said that, new assemblies have to be constituted for the adoption of presidential system. "Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain does not have the clue about the Constitution nor it seems he has read it, thus he can talk about the adoption of the presidential system in the existing constitutional framework, he added.
On recent Pakistan-Israel contacts, he said, "Pakistan has weakened the cause of the Palestinians, and even the Palestinians authorities have voiced their concern on this. Israel has given only 22 percent of the land to the Palestinians, in which 450,000 Israeli settlers residing against the Geneva Convention. Pressure on Israel should continue, on the line of South Africa, to vacate the occupied lands of Palestine and no contacts be made with them till the independence of Palestine."
While condemning the comments of General Musharraf he made in the US against the women of Pakistan, he said that he not only damaged the image of our females but also lied that he did not make any such comments, which later was refuted by a US newspaper that they have the recording. "The President owes an apology to the women of Pakistan," he added.
On Waziristan, he said that our army was waging a war against its people and killing innocent men, women and children. He said that no one knows the true picture in Waziristan, as the ISI has imposed a censorship on news coming from there and no one was permitted to visit the area. He demanded that cross-parliamentary committee must be sent to Waziristan as a fact-finding mission, so that true facts could come out. "If we do not act now, we would face another East Pakistan situation," he warned.
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