ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Monday said his party would not change its stance regarding 18th Amendment and the National Finance Commission (NFC) award, even if they "want to arrest his entire family". Bilawal, while taking to the media outside accountability court after appearance of former president Asif Ali Zardari in Toshakhana reference, said that he wanted to say this through the media that "We will not allow any harm to the 18th Amendment or the 1973 Constitution." "Do whatever what you want," he said. Bilawal said the PPP had fought against dictator Ayub Khan, Yahya Khan, Ziaul Haq and Musharraf, and was still fighting against the current 'puppet regime'.
He said the PPP was being pressurised for the 18th amendment and the NFC but would not change its stance on such vital issues. He also said 17th Aug was a historic day for Pakistan and the PPP because it was the last day of the dictator, Ziaul Haq.
This should also be the end of this 'hybrid regime,' which is being run from somewhere else, he said, adding that this 'fake democracy' and 'puppet' will not run any more. The PPP chairman said attempts were being made to control and run the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), judges and opposition parties such as the puppet government.
"You will fail in your efforts to achieve these goals," he said. He accused the current regime of playing "psychological games" with him and his family. Bilawal said today police had blocked all the roads leading to the accountability court.
"People and lawyers should be allowed to see the proceedings," he said, adding that this was neither a military court nor a court of a dictator. He said the Islamabad police and the district administration also stopped counsels of Zardari, Farooq Naik and Sardar Abdul Latif Khosa and they were mishandled by the police. Several senior lawyers of the Supreme Court were also stopped. He asked whether this was a tactic to pressurize judges or the PPP. Does this happen in an independent state?
What did they want to hide from the judges of the Supreme Court and the people of Pakistan? The entire Islamabad police was deputed for one court appearance. The PPP chairman said one judge of the accountability court allowed Zardari to appear via video link, whereas the other judge ordered Zardari to appear before it in person despite the Covid-19 pandemic. He also criticised the NAB prosecutor for abusing Zardari's counsel in the court, saying that the prosecutor resorted to such behaviour because he did not have any arguments.
The PPP chairman further said a notorious terrorist, Ehsanullah Ehsan, a prime accused in the 2014 Army Public School (APS) Peshawar attack, but no court in the country took suo moto notice. If they cannot give justice to the APS children then who they will give justice to, he remarked.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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