LAHORE: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is determined to observing black day in collaboration with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and other opposition parties against ‘election rigging’ by the government.

PPP Punjab president Qamar Zaman Kaira says his party along with the PML-N and other opposition parties would take to The Mall on July 25 to protest against rigging and fascism of the PTI-led government.

Jiyalas would take part in the activity with full enthusiasm, he said at a joint press conference along with Munawwar Anjum, Chaudhry Manzoor, Malik Osman and Aslam Gill and other leaders here on Monday.

Mr Kaira said the nation expected that Prime Minister Imran Khan would represent it in the United States and draw the latter’s attention towards the sacrifices Pakistan was offering in the war on terror but, he regretted, the prime minister continued hurling threats on the political rivals in his speech to the diaspora.

He said the prime minister was speaking as superintendent of a prison when he talked of withdrawing certain facilities being availed by the incarcerated political opponents.

“Dear brother, this is not your job and the law in vogue will be implemented in the country because it’s not any kingdom, though your own conduct speaks of royalty. There’s democracy, though weak, in Pakistan and courts are delivering justice,” he said.

He also chided the prime minister for what he said defacing history by stating that socialism [introduced by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto-led PPP government in early 70s] spoiled the progress made by the country during Gen Ayub era.

He lamented that the PM didn’t know that the law in vogue in the country is a social democratic law and all the facilities offered in capitalist systems the world over are because of fear of this law.

He recalled that only few families became rich under Ayub regime and this concentration of wealth led to the bifurcation of the country.

Referring to the prime minister’s offer of providing container and other facilities to those wishing to stage sit-ins against the PTI government, Mr Kaira said those making offers could not tolerate a few hundreds of PPP activists when they tried to reach courts where party chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari was to appear.

He said no ticker of Maryam Nawaz’s Faisalabad rally was allowed to be run on the TV channels, what to talk of its live coverage.

He said the PPP would pace up its mass contact drive as Bilawal Bhutto would visit various Punjab towns as well as other provinces.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2019