ISLAMABAD: After the opposition backed by ex-premier Nawaz Sharif announced to launch a movement to oust Prime Minister Imran Khan, the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has also geared up efforts to effectively confront the opposition’s recently formed alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

The sources within the ruling PTI said the prime minister had given directives to his cabinet ministers and party spokespersons to counter the opposition’s ‘fake narrative’ of ‘vote ko izat do’ and expose their ‘double standards’.

They said the narrative of Sharif had already been exposed after his recent outburst against the military through which he wanted nothing but ‘NRO’ [national reconciliation ordinance] to avoid the cases against him pending in various courts.

According to the PTI insiders, the government is also working to out forth a new narrative in order to expose ‘the lies’ being told by Sharif, and other opposition parties, as they all want to end the graft cases against themselves in various courts.

He said the government would fully counter the ‘so-called’ save democracy ‘mantra’ of the opposition through a new narrative, which “we want to launch in order to expose the opposition and their lies”.

The PDM has announced its first public meeting on October 11 in Quetta, saying this would mark the beginning of their anti-government campaign.

One of the strategies, which according to sources; the government seriously is working on, is to bring back ex-premier Sharif from London, who is not ready to return home, despite making it out to get medical assistance in November 2019.

Another strategy, they said would be to press the cases against Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of Sharif, which, they contended could be through cancellation of her bails from the courts.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020