LAHORE: Special Assistant to Punjab Chief Minister on Information Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan says Prime Minister Imran Khan delivered a great yorker hitting the “middle stump of the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)” in the Lahore rally of the opposition.

She was speaking at a press conference flanked by known boxers Amir Khan and Muhammad Waseem here on Sunday.

Using cricket terminology, she said the PDM entered the field without practice that’s why it got “retired hurt”.

After “failure” of the PDM’s Lahore meeting, she said, now there was a complete silence in Jati Umra (the residence of the Sharifs).

“The PDM should come in the ring after proper warm-up [exercise] next time,” she advised the opposition.

Employing boxing jargon, she said Imran Khan “knocked out” Nawaz Sharif in politics through a “legal blow”. And after getting knocked out, “he [Nawaz] is now talking to pizza in Oxford Street”, a reference to a recent picture of the former prime minister having a pizza in London.

She told a questioner that in order to bring “political absconders” back to the country the PTI government was negotiating with the UK authorities.

She said the government had played half of its innings and now it was going to play “powerful political shots” in the next half.

Dr Awan said the decision to hold Senate elections by show of hands was “the first sixer” from Imran Khan that surprised the opposition that could not comprehend his “political bowling strategy”. She expressed her optimism that the PTI government would win a majority in the Senate elections.

Responding to a light comment made by Pakistan-origin boxer Amir Khan, Dr Awan said she was ready for a boxing match with PML-N’s Maryam Nawaz.

She said Amir Khan and Muhammad Waseem were great sons of the soil who played a great role in portraying a soft image of Pakistan across the world.

She said as compared to Pakistani politicians, the players had rendered invaluable services for the image building of the country.

Dr Awan said that the youth made a major chunk of the country’s population and it was crucial to harness their potential in a constructive way for the development of the country.

She said the Punjab government was providing all-out resources for the development of sports facilities in the province as these were essential for the development of the youth’s mental strength and physical fitness.

She said the Punjab government had formulated a comprehensive sports policy under which sportsmen, especially from rural areas, would get equal opportunities to excel in the field.

She said that by organising the international boxing competition in the Governor House, Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar gave a message to the sportsmen that the doors of public places were open to the youth.

The popularity of Muhammad Waseem in international boxing was a defeat of the “anti-state elements trying to create instability in Balochistan”, she said.

Published in Dawn, December 21st, 2020