SUKKUR: Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan emir Sirajul Haq has alleged that Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) are mafias which have held the nation and institutions hostage and ruined the country economically and politically.

Talking to media persons at Sukkur airport on Tuesday, Haq said that PDM and PTI were in power at the Centre and in provinces. Both consisted of corrupt landlords, drug dealers, land grabbers and mafias of flour, petrol and diesel etc, he said.

He said that youths were jobless and poor children were out of school because of continuous fight between PDM and PTI.

Haq lamented that justice was not administered by judiciary, laws were not made in both Senate and National Assembly and Election Commissioner of Pakistan avoided fulfilling his constitutional duties.

He demanded that the electoral reforms be amended and Election Commission of Pakistan be made more powerful and self-sufficient. Pakistan did not face more danger from external foes than from the internal ones, he said.

PPP had ruled Sindh since 1970 but it had utterly failed to develop Karachi, Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur and other towns. It had rather ruined the province on the whole, he said.

He said that neither the federal nor the provincial government had prepared any policy for rehabilitating rain and flood-hit people.

He asked the federal and provincial governments as to where they had spent the funds and the aid given by international community for flood stricken people. The victims should be helped so that they could get their homes rebuilt and resume their routine lives, he demanded.

About the transgender bill, Haq said that JI had filed a petition against the bill. The transgender persons should be provided security, jobs and respect and their problems should be resolved without delay but no attempt be made to open the door to homosexuality in their name, he said.

Commenting on American president’s statement against Pakistan’ nuclear programme, he said that Pakistan should expel American ambassador. America itself was a rogue state, which had dropped atomic bombs on two cities of Japan and attacked 23 countries, he said.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2022