Web Desk (LTN NEWS): Ex-PM says that political funding in the country started with his part. On Wednesday, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said there was a “conspiracy” to pit his party against the military. This came as political tensions were rising and rumors were being spread by an online smear campaign.
As the ruling coalition prepared to take a number of legal actions against the PTI, the PTI’s top leaders, including party leader Imran Khan, made a number of statements warning of a “conspiracy” to pit the former ruling party against the army.
Imran Khan used a video link to talk to his party workers and supporters. He said that the coalition government was trying to make people think that the country’s biggest party was fighting against its own army. He said that people were trying to make PTI and the military fight with each other, and he said that ECP’s case about illegal funding was the first step in this direction.
The former prime minister said that India, Israel, and many western countries were the happiest when his government lost power. “India used to say that Imran Khan is a puppet of the army, but when we were in charge, the army and the government agreed on everything.”
He said that PTI workers found out about the campaign to spread false information about the country.
“Asif Ali Zardari said that the DG ISPR should be sent to India after the attacks in Mumbai. On the other hand, Nawaz Sharif said that the ISI was involved in terrorism in India, according to the Dawn leaks “he added.
Imran said that Nawaz Sharif had even invited Narendra Modi, who is the prime minister of India, to the wedding. “These people say that we are betrayers. Even though all of their money is abroad and they have been accused of corruption many times, they still say they are patriotic.”
“The ECP report is full of lies.”
The head of the PTI said that his party was the only one in Pakistan that started political funding in the country. He said this in response to the ECP’s harsh verdict in the case of illegal funding.
“They told us that the 40,000 people who gave us money were foreigners. We have reports from audits. We gave the ECP everything, but it made a report that was full of lies. If the court does a good job of looking into it, it will be clear that the PTI is the only party that got its money in a legal way “He also said that some people are trying to get him kicked out of the race.
Imran said, when talking about the Toshakhana case, that all people in important government jobs get gifts. “Toshakhana gave Asif Ali Zardari three cases, but Nawaz Sharif only got one. All of the cases are illegal, though.”
Now, the PTI leader said, the coalition government will try to hurt his reputation. “They know which news organizations will back them. They’ll try to make me look bad in public. They will try to beat us with their strength. Because of their own goals, this will hurt the country. Do the people who got rid of us want a strong Pakistan? They want to make sure that Pakistan stays alive.”
The prime minister who was kicked out of office said that the plot against his party is very serious and dangerous. “When the largest party in the country goes up against the army, nothing else is as dangerous. I went to East Pakistan when I was 18. I learned how people came to dislike the army. It’s very bad for us, but it’s happening again today.”
He said that the people who are part of the plot are the local collaborators who do what their foreign bosses tell them to do.
“After they got rid of our government, they tried to break up our party. But then, there were by-elections in Punjab. They were sure they would win, but a lot of people showed up to vote for us, so all of their plans failed. So their fear grew even more, “he added.
The former PM said that he doesn’t know if al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in Pakistani airspace or not. But he said that many newspapers from other countries say that Pakistan’s airspace was used. “We lost 80,000 Pakistanis in the war on terror, and it cost $20 billion. There is a small group of people who got rich from that money. I’m afraid that for a small amount, we could get into another fight. We know from the past that it doesn’t bring us much good and hurts us “he added.
He said that a lot of PTI members say that the TTP is making threats against them. “I also think this is part of the plot. They want to weaken the PTI so that they can have more power over Pakistan.”
When Imran was asked about the arrest of PTI leader Shahbaz Gill, he said that if Shahbaz Gill had said something bad about Pakistan, there is a way to handle it, which is to file a case.
“You file a complaint against him, but Shahbaz Gill should have a chance to explain… But breaking the windows of someone’s car is not a good way to treat them “he added.
Imran Khan showed a video clip during his speech in which Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari, Fazlur Rehman, and Ayaz Sadiq criticize the army chief and the armed forces.
He said the PTI had enough power on the streets to shut down the whole country. But the situation in the country is bad enough to cause worry. “We have only used peaceful ways to protest. Tell me about a time when we did something bad to the country or tried to.”
Imran went on to say that there was a plan to break up the PTI. “They want to make us weak because they want Nawaz Sharif to come back before the elections so that they can compete with the PTI.”
He said that what Pakistan needs most right now is political stability so that we can get out of this hole. “I’m worried about our national security because the country is getting to a place where it would have to give up something.”
The PTI leader came to the conclusion that the only way out of the political uncertainty in the country right now is through fair elections.
Senior PTI leader Asad Umar agreed with Imran and said that the PML-N-led coalition government was trying to make the PTI and the army fight with each other.
At a press conference in Lahore, the leader of the PTI said that cases were being brought against his party as if it were “a threat to Pakistan.”
Umar said that a “reprehensible” tweet came from a Twitter account with only 50 followers and that it was shared by accounts with a lot of followers to make things worse.
He said that the top leaders of the ruling coalition, like Nawaz Sharif, Maryam Nawaz, Asif Ali Zardari, and Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman, had been criticizing the army until recently. “Was there anything done about them?” he asked.
He said that Imran had even stressed how important it was to have a strong army after losing power. “Our chairman said in no uncertain terms that Pakistan needs its army more than Imran Khan.
The leader of the PTI insisted that the country had realized how powerful it was. “If decisions about Pakistan’s future are made, they will be made by the people and no one else,” he said.
The leader of the PTI also criticized the Election Commission of Pakistan for “sheer discrimination” against the PTI in the way it decided the funding case.
He said that the ECP had “dropped” the phrase “foreign funding,” and he didn’t understand why it was being used again when it wasn’t even in the law.
