Minister for Defence Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Wednesday said the leaders and close associates of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) had disowned their Chairman Imran Khan’s statements spewing hate against state institutions.
Addressing a joint presser with Minister for Finance Miftah Ismail, Khawaja Asif lambasted the former premier for justifying his spiteful remarks against the senior leadership of the armed forces as his discourse on meritocracy. Khawaja said Imran Khan had earlier commented on the appointment of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and the next day he made a new interpretation of his previous narrative.
“He is doing it under a deliberate design to attack and assess reaction of the state institutions. First attack, make institutions controversial and weak and observe their reaction then after some calculation say I just intended to discuss meritocracy through critical arguments,” the minister said.
He added that throughout his political career, all appointments were made on merit in the tri-services of the country ‘accept one or two’. “The nominations of four or five high ranking officers are sent from the leadership of the armed forces that are appointed by the prime minister after necessary consultation,” he mentioned.
He said the close associates of Imran Khan in his party were abstaining from commenting on his statements.
“They are avoiding from commenting on it, and a day earlier the President of Pakistan, who has been nominated by the PTI, disassociated himself from what Imran Khan had said,” said the minister. “The current COAS was appointed by our previous government and he endorsed his appointment. In three years, he (Imran Khan) has applauded the current COAS,” he pointed out. He alleged that Imran Khan as prime minister used to remain absent from many important meetings chaired by the COAS that were of critical nature.
Khawaja Asif added that Imran Khan had left many core issues of political and security nature on the COAS to handle. “After losing power, he was criticising the military leadership and deliberately creating doubts about the next inline COAS,” he said.
He made a flurry of queries on Imran Khan asking him, “Was Buzdar’s appointment on merit? Or the appointment of Chief Minister KP was on merit? What he (Imran Khan) has done on merit? BRT inquiry was silenced. Is that merit? Tosha Khana diamonds case?”
He commented that Imran Khan after his ouster through no confidence motion started claiming the US and others for conspiring it. “You have accused the US for it, and then hired a lobbyist on $25,000 to appease the US. Is that merit?”
Miftah Ismail, while terming the hike in electricity and petroleum prices a result of unwise policies of the previous government of the PTI, hinted at slowing down of the inflation rate from next month.
“The nation would have to bear the higher rates for one more month,” he said.
He said former Prime Minister Imran Khan did not follow the commitment made with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) especially with regard to subsidies on electricity, gas and petroleum products. He said the previous government had committed to the IMF that the government would not give any amnesty to the businessmen and subsidies on petroleum, gas and electricity, but going against the commitment, the then government offered amnesty in February 2022 and then provided subsidy on electricity and petroleum products. He said this was the reason why the rates of electricity and petroleum products sky rocketed now.
The minister said the PTI government had put the country’s economy on the verge of default, and Pakistan was on fourth number of the defaulting states. However, he said that due to the prudent policies of the current coalition government, the country had come out of crisis.
