Jamaat-i-Islami Naib Amir Liaquat Baloch reiterated his party’s stance that all political parties should decide one date for the 2023 general elections instead of insisting on Punjab Assembly election alone first. Addressing his party’s Eid Milan gathering and speaking to the media, he said JI’s ongoing efforts for negotiations among all parties was aimed at improving political environment and stopping interference by undemocratic forces.
He said holding Punjab Assembly election alone would deepen the prevailing political and constitutional crises.
He said foreign forces did not want Pakistan to remain unstable, rather they were seeking to freeze Pakistan’s nuclear assets by taking advantage of its economic crisis. He warned that the prevailing conditions were leading the country towards disastrous consequences. Mr Baloch said Pakistan was faced with economic, political and constitutional crises and politicians had to find a way out. The situation could not be improved by using the judiciary and establishment, he said, adding that martial law regimes never resolved problems in the past. If politicians again allowed themselves to be used by the establishment, they would face a deeper crisis, he cautioned.
He said JI advised democratic forces to give up their ego and stubbornness to adopt democratic path in line with the Constitution which was possible only through dialogue. He observed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and PTI chief Imran Khan appreciated JI’s overtures. Mr Baloch said international forces could create such conditions that they had created in Syria, Libya, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen. “We [politicians] should assert and take our own decisions instead of seeking support from the international establishment,” he added. The JI leader pointed out that his party had won a clear majority in the Jan 15 LG polls in Karachi but, he deplored, attempts were afoot to convert this victory into defeat. He hoped that Karachi mayor would be from JI.
