SUKKUR: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl general secretary Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri has said that 2020 is the year of real change and the year of removal of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government.

Current political scenario, estrangement of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan, Grand Democratic Alliance and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid from the government revived the opposition parties’ hopes that general election would be held this year, he said.

The Maulana was addressing a press conference at the residence of a local party leader at Jam Sawaro village near Kandhkot late on Saturday evening.

He said the freedom march continued to move towards its destination. Those who were saying that the march was aimed at ensuring freedom of Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leaders were merely conjecturing while the fact remained that the march did not secure anybody’s freedom, he said.

He said the PTI government only talked about elimination of corruption but its own performance in this regard had been exposed by Transparency International.

Haideri said that at present, inflation had reached its peak thanks to inefficiency of the federal government, making it an uphill task for the poor and daily-wage earners to make both ends meet.

He said the record increase in inflation had broken the back of the poor as all essential daily-use items including wheat flour and vegetables had gone beyond people’s reach.

The government had snatched even right of prayers from people by raising expenses of Haj, he said.

About federal minister Shaikh Rasheed Ahmed, he said that he did not want to talk about him as he was a courtier who just tried to stick with every government so that he could get a ministry.

JUI-F leader Hafiz Rab Nawaz Chachar and other local people were also present on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, January 27th, 2020