HYDERABAD, March 18: The central secretary general, National Awami Party Pakistan, (NAPP), Shakir Buneri, has said that the country cannot be extricated from the existing crisis merely by holding elections unless the necessary requirements for the restoration of a true democracy were fulfilled.

While speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Monday, Mr Buneri said that the accountability process should be transparent and it should be completed before holding the general elections.

He pointed out that during the meet the people campaign launched in Sindh under the leadership of NAPP chief Ajmal Khattak, they had met the central leadership of a number of political and religious parties and these leaders had expressed grave concern over the prevailing conditions.

He said that the military and civil bureaucracy was working to protect the interests of those who had monopoly over the power.

Mr Buneri said that the religious parties were also defamed under a plan and added that the confidence building exercise must be started before the country reached a point of no return.

He said that the patriotic and people-friendly forces, religious parties and the armed forces should try to end the rivalries and hatred to rescue the country from the crisis which was deepening with the passage of each day.

He said that before finding any solution to the existing problems, the diagnosis of the problems was a prerequisite. He said that if the political parties were unable to diagnose the malady that had inflicted the country, then it was the duty of the government to throw away personal likes and dislikes and bring the parties to a negotiating table to find out the solution to the crisis.

Mr Buneri said that his party was not against any nation or nationalities as it believed that all Pakistanis were one nation and added that the rights of the nationalities must be protected.

He pointed out that the parties of the country were unanimous in their opinion that the provincial autonomy should be guaranteed by bringing about amendments in the constitution through consensus.

He demanded that the campaign against the religious parties should be stopped otherwise it would negatively affect not only the internal situation but also the government.

The NAPP leader said that the whole of Sindh was against the construction of the Thal canal and added that if the apprehensions of the people of Sindh were not removed, it would increase the hatred between the provinces.