PESHAWAR: Pakistan Peoples Party provincial president Mohammad Humayun Khan on Monday said the party won’t succumb to any government pressure on its plans to begin a nationwide protest movement against price hike and unemployment in March.

He told reporters here that the government was using different tactics, including the National Accountability Bureau, to pressure the PPP leadership for not agitating against it.

“Whenever our party announces a protest movement, the top leadership receives the NAB notices showing political victimisation. However, we want to make it clear that such tactics won’t help the rulers pressure our leadership,” he said.

Mr Humayun said trials and tribulations were not new to the PPP as its top leaders had sacrificed lives for the country, democracy and downtrodden people.

Humayun asks PM to quit for failing to deliver

He said the party believed in democracy but it couldn’t tolerate the humiliation of people by the government.

“The prices of consumer goods are fast increasing but the government doesn’t have any concrete policy to control them,” he said.

The PPP leader said the ruling PTI hadn’t fulfilled its promise of creating new jobs and instead, it was sacking employees on one pretext or the other exposing contradiction in its words and actions.

He said Prime Minister Imran Khan had promised to provide jobs and shelter to the people and bring a positive change in their life but he not only failed to keep those promises but also added to the people’s misery by flawed policies.

Mr Humayun said the premier had made U-turns on his election promises. He said the government had adopted dictatorial policies and didn’t allow media to cover the events of the opposition parties.

The PPP leader said such tactics went against the Constitution.

He said the party had never bowed down before dictators and preferred to render sacrifices.

Mr Humayun said it was time that the prime minister should admit his failure to deliver and step down.

About the PPP’s anti-government agitation plans, he said the leadership had directed all office-bearers of the party at district and divisional levels to muster up the people’s support by holding corner meetings, personal contacts and door-to-door visits.

The PPP leader said the party would announce protest rallies and demonstrations in different areas to oust the incompetent government.

Published in Dawn, February 18th, 2020