Acting JI chief expresses his reservations about ‘hybrid system’ in Pakistan

LAHORE: Acting Chief of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Liaqat Baloch has said that hybrid political arrangements and unconstitutional systems cannot sustain, stressing that the federal and provincial governments must remove obstacles in the way of empowered local governments, which he described as the people’s fundamental right.

Addressing participants at a training camp in Mansoora on Saturday, Baloch urged the national leadership to sit together and agree on a minimum common agenda for the supremacy of the Constitution and restoration of democracy. He criticized state institutions for failing to deliver during the devastating floods, saying they make tall claims but are absent on the ground. “The real test will come at the stage of rehabilitation, when it will be clear what game the rulers are playing,” he remarked, warning that Jamaat-e-Islami would not tolerate injustice against flood victims, particularly farmers.

The JI leader also pointed to growing political and social polarization. “Prejudices and hatred have inflicted heavy damage. Turning away from dialogue and looking toward the establishment even for negotiations is not in the national interest,” he said. He said ruling elites and powerful circles are looting the national exchequer and usurping people’s rights. “The establishment creates idols out of personalities and when their popularity rises among the people, it topples them to raise new ones,” Baloch added.

He rejected governments formed through coercion, rigging, and Form-47 manipulation, saying they had bred despair and hopelessness among the masses. “Nations drown in the flood of hatred and prejudice,” he warned.

Baloch linked the rising wave of public discontent across South Asia to global trends. “From Sri Lanka to Bangladesh, Indonesia and Nepal, people have risen against oppressive systems,” he said, adding that Bangladesh—where Jamaat leaders were once executed and even public gatherings banned—was now witnessing a powerful comeback through the electoral success of Islami Chhatra Shibir at Dhaka University. “A revolution is knocking on Dhaka’s door,” he said.

Turning to international issues, the JI leader said the recent attack on Doha underscored that no Muslim country is safe from Israeli terrorism. “For two years, Israel has been carrying out a massacre in Gaza, yet its people remain steadfast like mountains. Across the world, millions are protesting against Israeli atrocities,” he said. Baloch called on Muslim countries to unite in defense of Palestine and against Israeli aggression.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025