ISLAMABAD, Nov 19: The opposition has turned down Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz's offer for dialogue made in his address to the nation, saying that his speech was devoid of substance, credibility and conviction.
People's Party Parliamentarians (PPP) Senator Farhatullah Babar termed the address "a sop to a nation beset with myriad problems and a repetition of pious hopes and vague promises".
Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) chairman Raja Zafarul Haq said the speech showed that Mr Aziz lacked a culture of 'tolerance and conviction'. Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) leader and Jamaat-i-Islami's (JI) deputy chief Liaquat Baloch said Mr Aziz had no mandate to hold talks with the opposition as he was simply following the policies of Gen Pervez Musharraf.
Senator Farhatullah Babar, in a statement, said: "The people of Pakistan have heard too often similar tall promises of rulers, only to be broken with impunity." "How many times the nation will be hoodwinked with the promises of socio-economic development, poverty alleviation, employment generation, speedy dispensation of justice, provincial harmony and dialogue with opposition political parties," he said, adding that five years ago "prime minister's boss Gen Musharraf also made similar promises".
"It is a joke with the nation as on the one hand the government has invited the opposition for talks while on the other the issue of president's uniform has already been settled by parliament," he said.
Mr Babar said Mr Aziz would be remembered in the history as a prime minister whose government paved the way for politicising the military and piloted a bill aimed at making the army chief as president of the country.
"It is the most dubious distinction of Shaukat Aziz to have allowed the re-writing of the civil-military equation on the terms of the military alone and thereby doing a lasting disservice to democracy and the supremacy of parliament," Mr Babar added.
He said that before Mr Aziz became the prime minister, he had promised an 'efficient' government, but ended up with a cabinet of over 60 members to buy off his own party men.
He said Shaukat Aziz's nomination and election as prime minister was itself a product of "manipulation and electoral fraud" and, therefore, he failed to evoke any credibility.
The prime minister had spoken of creating jobs and making recruitments, but was unable to send back hundreds of serving and retired military personnel who, he said, had occupied jobs meant for civilians.
Mr Aziz had spoken of a dialogue with the opposition, but he was unable to heed a demand made by his own party leaders on the floor for the release of political prisoners, Mr Babar said.
PML-N chairman Raja Zafarul Haq said Mr Aziz had been out of the country for decades and, therefore, had no idea of the issues of the people of Pakistan. He said Mr Aziz had used very derogatory language against the opposition for exercising their parliamentary rights, which showed that he lacked tolerance.
He said the prime minister had talked of providing justice to the people without realizing that judges of superior courts had taken oath under the PCO and not under the constitution.
