–Shehbaz Sharif says ‘confused’ PTI govt has failed to contain pandemic
–PML-N chief says Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Khurram Dastgir will appear before inquiry commission to expose people responsible for sugar, wheat crises
LAHORE: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Thursday demanded the president to hold a session of parliament so that a national strategy can be formulated against the coronavirus pandemic.
Addressing a meeting of the PML-N Central Executive Committee, party president Shehbaz Sharif said it was about time that parliament went in session as the government “completely failed” to control the pandemic.
Lashing out at the reluctance to call in the session, he said if the government could hold cabinet meetings every week in space more confined than the Parliament House, then what was the harm in convening the session.
National Assembly Opposition Leader Shehbaz said the socioeconomic instability triggered by the government’s incompetence and incapacity over the past 18 months amplified the impact of the crisis triggered by the coronavirus.
“PML-N extended unconditional cooperation to the government based on compassion and devotion to the nation. With the same spirit, the party formulated a national strategy after extensive and exhaustive consultation with all political parties, sectors and stakeholders in the fight against COVID-19, he added.
He said the government not only “pushed it off the table but lacked the capacity to build its own cohesive, comprehensive and practicable national strategy to fight the pandemic”.
The PML-N president said the government was “confused” on every issue i.e. lockdown, relief efforts, and provision of protective gear to the medics. “This confusion is the hallmark of this administration which is evident in its economic policies regarding policy rate, budgetary allocations, revenue targets, and each and every domain of governance,” the PML-N chief added.
On the other hand, the doctors are extremely worried that lifting the lockdown could have catastrophic effects on an already overrun health system, he added.
Shehbaz said, “Pakistan is at the precipice of a defining moment in its history but the PM’s only pro-active role only came to the forefront to rob the people’s wheat and sugar to enrich himself and his cronies.”
“The real culprits and criminals guilty of sugar and wheat theft are Imran Khan and Usmaan Buzdar,” he alleged.
“The Inquiry Commission is aimed at protecting the culprits, forcing PML-N to expose the actual villains of the sugar and wheat crisis. For which Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Khurram Dastigir Khan will appear before the commission,” he added.
He said the media faced the worst censorship and financial crisis during the current government and renewed his call for interest free loans to media. He called for an end to the media lockdown and release of Geo Group chief Mir Shakeel-ur-Rehman.
The PML-N president expressed solidarity with the Kashmiri people and condemned Indian actions in the occupied region.
He called on the international community and the United Nations to play their role to end the misery of the Kashmiris. He also slammed the treatment meted out to Indian Muslims in the light of coronavirus pandemic. He said the lives of millions of Muslims are being jeopardized at the hands of mob violence by peddling an anti-Muslim narrative and stirring up Islamophobia.
