ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Secretary General, Ahsan Iqbal, on Wednesday, said that the present government wanted to steal the next general election through electronic voting machine (EVM), like it “stole the general election in 2018 via result transmission system (RTS)”.
Talking to reporters after appearing before the Accountability Court in the Narowal Sports City Complex Project (NSCCP) case against him and others, he said that the government want to steal the next election by introducing a system on the pattern of RTS through passing electoral reforms bill.
What can be expected from a government whose law minister and the Ministry for Parliamentary Affairs do not know that a constitutional amendment cannot be passed through a simple majority.
He further said that another “drama” of the government came to light by giving an interview to a rented TV channel -American TV channel HBO-which is famous for telecasting films.
The prime minister’s interview was conducted by the HBO after government made payment to the channel, he said. Without naming the prime minister, he said that in its interview, he (the prime minister) stated that Pakistan will not provide bases to the United States (US) for operation in Afghanistan, while on the other hand, the US said that it has not demanded bases from Pakistan. To a question about the statement of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB)’s spokesman after the Islamabad High Court (IHC)’s detailed judgment on his bail plea in which he stated that the bureau will approach the Accountability Court to hold hearing on a daily basis, is the contempt of Accountability Court and it also give an impression that Accountability Court is working under the NAB.
He said that the IHC detailed judgment says that the bureau has not alleged that the accused had gained any financial benefit.
Responding to a question about in-camera meeting of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, he said that he could not talk about the meeting at it was in-camera but he can only say in the meeting military leadership pointed out serious possible threats faced by the country.
“If the country were facing serious threats then we need a government, which create unity and run the country according to the constitution,” he said.
He said, “Prime Minister Sahib, the new Pakistan you have made was only for five percent elite, while the remaining 95 percent Pakistanis have been destroyed in this new Pakistan.”
“This is the government of the elite class as only the businesses of rich class are flourishing,” he said.
Iqbal said that the present government is a “brigade of liars” and it will end soon.
He said that today, there is a clear difference between the rich and the poor and there are two separate Pakistan.
About his case, the PML leader said that according to article 164 of the constitution the federal government can spend funds an any part of the country but the chairman NAB did not read this article.
Article 164 has nothing to do with the 18th amendment, he said.
“If he committed a crime by releasing fund for a provincial project then a female minister of PTI has also included projects of her own constituency in the current Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP). Chairman NAB sahib, if you can arrest him, then do you have the courage to arrest the PTI’s minister under the same charges which you levelled against him, who has approved projects for her constituency (Badin),” he said. He said that the chairman NAB is making “false” cases against opposition leadership on the direction of the present government.
Earlier, he appeared before Accountability Court-III judge Syed Asghar Ali in the NSCCP case.
The NAB prosecutor, Waseem Javed, and witness Azhar Ahmed appeared before the court.
The court marked the attendance of Iqbal and allowed him to leave.
The witness, while recording his statement before the court, produced various documents before the court regarding the case. The court recorded partial statement of the witness and summoned him during the next hearing to be held on September 6 to complete his statement.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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