TAXILA: Jamaat-i-Islami Secretary General Liaqat Baloch has said that those stealing public funds do not deserve leniency, and that JI wants every penny recovered from them.

He said that moral, economic and political corruption has shaken the foundations of society and called corruption the main hurdle to the country’s development.

Speaking to the press, he said that JI is mobilising public opinion against corruption and the status quo. He said the party had appointed honest and competent leaders at every level who could serve the nation well and bring progress and stability to the country.

He said that JI supports Islamic democracy, and that this would solve the country’s social, political and economic problems.

He said that the solution to all the country’s problems lies in the enforcement of Shariah.

Baloch added that the failure to implement Article 62 and 63 of the Constitution allows corrupt politicians to reach the assemblies even though they belong in prison.

He said that political opportunists may change parties and slogans but their character would remain the same.

The JI leader said that politicians that have developed a taste for corruption could not mend their ways, and could not live without commissions and kickbacks.

He said that whenever action is taken against the plunderers they complain about political victimization.

Baloch questioned the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) decision to let off those who had stolen billions after paying a few million.

He said that those who had stolen billions and deposited the funds in their personal bank accounts were tyrants, and were the reason why the country is hugely indebted to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

He said that while each newborn is thousands in debt, the corrupt leaders own palaces in cities like London and Dubai.

Published in Dawn, October 7th, 2015

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