LAHORE: The PPP has asked the government not to allow the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and the Pakistan Awami Tehreek to prolong their protests and ransacking of state buildings.

“The activities of these parties do not fall within the ambit of law and the Constitution. They are disregarding the Supreme Court’s instruction to vacate the Constitution Avenue,” PPP Punjab President Manzoor Wattoo said here on Wednesday.

He said the parliament had spoken loud and clear that it would defend the Constitution and democracy but the message had also been given to the government to improve governance.

He said Senator Atizaz Ahsan represented the PPP’s policy on various issues of national importance and also its determination to defend the Constitution and ensure continuity of the political process come what may.

He said despite the bad governance and the Model Town incident it was not possible to give a free hand to the PTI and PAT protesters.

Wattoo said had the Punjab government not used brutal force in Model Town the political situation would have been different.

He pointed out that the people were leading a miserable life due to phenomenal price hike, poverty, unemployment, worsening law and order and above all agonising loadshedding of gas and electricity.

He said tall promises of controlling loadshedding in months by the PML-N leaders especially Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had raised the level of frustration of the people to a boiling point and their agitation against the government was not misplaced.

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2014