General election to be referendum for new Pakistan: Nawaz

JARANWALA/FAISALABAD: Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday said that General Election 2018 would prove to be a referendum, and people would once again repose full confidence in the continuity of progressive and pro-people policies of Pakistan Muslim League-N government.

Addressing a mammoth gathering at Jinnah Stadium, he said the people of Jaranwala and Faisalabad had endorsed the PML-N policies of eliminating load-shedding, terrorism, and putting the country on the path of progress and prosperity.

The former prime minister enthralled the participants by comparing his meeting with that of Lahore where a large number of empty chairs were displayed during the meeting of three main opposition parties. He said there was no parallel between the meeting of PML-N and other political parties.

He said the huge participation of people in the PML-N meetings, was the dawn of a new prosperous and fully developed Pakistan.

He said millions of people voted him to power but he was disqualified afterwards. "My fault was that I had not received salary from my son and hence I was disqualified and asked to vacate the prime minister's house." "Now, I have come to people's court who could well adjudge my fault," he added

He said the journey between Islamabad to Lahore needed just four hours, but he covered that distance in four days. He said he was surprised by the enthusiasm of people on GT Road and the same enthusiasm was evident in the Jaranwala meeting.

He said elections would be a referendum for a new Pakistan where every person would get a respectable job and load-shedding would vanish forever.

Nawaz Sharif said he had a solemn pledge with the people to end load-shedding in his five-year tenure, but he was disqualified after four years. "Despite that, I am proud of fulfilling my promise and pledge." Similarly, the promise to link Jaranwala with Motorway had also been fulfilled, he added.

He said he would again visit Jaranwala during election days as he had deep love for the people of Jaranwala and Faisalabad.

Recalling the year 1999 when he decided to opt for atomic explosions, he said that there was no shortage and dearth of electricity and the PML-N government was planning to export electricity to other countries at that juncture.

He recalled that there was no terrorism and country was making progress by leaps and bounds and people were getting jobs. Schools and colleges were being established and Pakistan was going to emerge as an economic tiger but Musharraf took over in the country, which eventually disrupted the pace of progress and prosperity.

He said he was again voted to power after 13 long years, and he had to spend seven years in exile and 14 months in jail during that ordeal,.

He said when he came to power again, people were facing long load-shedding hours and incidents of terrorism. There was no electricity and gas, and the country was facing turmoil, he added.

He said the PML-N government once gain rooted out terrorism, though sporadic cases of terrorism were occurring again, as an elected prime minister had been disqualified.

Regarding recent drone attack, he said during his tenure, he had made it clear to US President Obama that Pakistan was a sovereign country and it would not allow anybody to intrude on its soil.

Nawaz Sharif was critical of the opposition for making false claims of building a new Pakistan and said people of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa had witnessed for themselves that KP ruling party had done nothing and was only staging sit-ins and leveling false accusations.

He said the nation had got true understanding of the meanings of 'Sadiq' and 'Ameen' when he was disqualified but another politician facing the same charges was given a certificate of honesty.

He said the PML-N had served Pakistan wholeheartedly and the results were visible to everyone. He said that he was disqualified first and the trial was conducted later on.

He said that Tahirul Qadri was again in Pakistan to remove an elected government, but he would ultimately be rejected by masses once again.

He said that Tahirul Qadri damaged himself, along with a 'Ladla' and one from Sindh. They all would be jointly defeated in election-2018, he added.

He said the PML-N had decided to provide jobs to everyone. Similarly, houses would be provided to shelter-less people. He said he and people were Two-in-One and no one could separate them.

He said that he may be disqualified permanently but no one could break his bond with the people.

He said the nation would hopefully disapprove his disqualification. He asked the people if they were ready to accept it. The crowd raised hands, saying 'No' 'No'.

He said it seemed that legal proceeding were only focused on Nawaz Sharif and added there would be no harm if Allah Almighty and his people were with him.

He said that he is the president of Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), as the law allowed him to head a political party. There should be no breach of law, he added.

He announced that Jaranwala would be made a district. After finalizing the delimitation process of new constituencies, he would request Shehbaz Sharif to declare it a district, he added.

He lauded Shehbaz Sharif for undertaking huge development works in Punjab and said that a large number of field-to-market roads had been constructed. Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif had done an excellent job in education and health sectors as well, he added.

He said that he would also visit other districts to restore the sanctity of vote and provision of justice to masses.

Regarding the metro, he said Shehbaz Sharif had launched metro bus in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Multan and the facility would also be provided in other divisional headquarters of the province.

He asked the people to foil all conspirators and defeat them in the 2018 elections.