PESHAWAR: Jamaat-i-Islami will launch a nationwide campaign against corruption from March to expose the people involved in the loot and plunder of national wealth so that the nation, especially youth, could hold them accountable.

This was stated by JI chief Senator Sirajul Haq while announcing his party’s youth policy on the final day of the three-day youth festival at Tehmas Khan Stadium here on Sunday. Several other JI leaders, including provincial chief Mushtaq Ahmed Khan, party’s youth wing president Zubair Ahmed Gondal, general secretary Abdul Wasih and Peshawar chief Sabir Hussain Awan also spoke on the occasion.

Mr Haq said that the basic cause of the weak foundations of the departments was the rampant corruption which had brought the country at the verge of destruction. He said that the youth were justified to ask where was the country (Pakistan) which had been founded by Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Allama Mohammad Iqbal and thousands of people rendered sacrifices of lives and properties and migrated for the purpose.

He said that provision of facilities like education, health, shelter was the responsibility of the state, but successive governments failed to fulfill their duties and poor parents had been left with the only option to sell jewellery and household items for meeting educational expenditures of their children.

The JI chief said that a particular class of capitalists was exploiting the poor nation and the children below the poverty line were forced to search their food in garbage dumps. He said that JI was determined to fight for the rights of such low income group to enable it lead life with honour.

He said that corruption had forced poor people to sell kidneys as they were declined jobs without bribe and such exploitative system made the youth as terrorists. He said that it was necessary to get the youth rid of terrorism by giving them employment and sources of livelihood.

He claimed that JI had a concrete economic policy to bring an end to the exploitative system. He said that the JI to launch drive against corruption in March credit went to JI which provided free-of-cost education in the province and if his party came into power it would apply the same policy at national level.

Mr Haq said that his party would make Pakistan a real Islamic welfare state where senior citizens and jobless people would be given allowances. He said that they would force the corrupt elements to bring back the national wealth from foreign banks to the country.

“We support the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, but also ask the government to link Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to the central Asian states so that the trade activities could be expanded and local economy boosted,” he said.

Condemning US policies, he said it was America that destroyed Iraq. He said that both the US and India were against Pakistan and their agents were involved in terrorist acts in the country. He said that Pakistani youth were aware of all the conspiracies and they would take all possible steps for protection of the country.

Published in Dawn, January 18th, 2016