LAHORE, Jan 25: Leaders of various political parties have called upon all opposition parties to unite at one platform and mobilise the people to launch a movement to oust the present rulers.
They were speaking at a meeting held on Thursday to observe the 34th death anniversary of the late Khwaja Rafiq Ahmad at a hotel by the Khwaja Rafiq Foundation with Pakistan’s former president Rafiq Ahmad Tarar in the chair.
PML-N leader Mian Nawaz Sharif also addressed the meeting by telephone from London for about 20 minutes calling upon all opposition leaders to attend the proposed multi-party conference (MPC) at London to take a united decision to remove the “present military ruler.”
A message from PML president Javid Hashmi from jail was also read out by his daughter MNA Maimuna Javid Hashmi. No PPP leader was present at the meeting.
Other speakers included Qazi Husain Ahmad, Imran Khan, Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilor, Mir Hasil Bizenjo, PML-N leader Khwaja Saad Rafiq, who is son of the late Khwaja Rafiq, Arshad Chaudhry of PDP, Tehmina Daultana of PML-N, and Amir Hamza.
Jamaat-i-Islami amir Qazi Husain Ahmad said unity of all opposition parties was the need of the hour to lead the nation to “get it rid of the present military dictatorship of Gen Pervez Musharraf.” He said it was in the best national interest and also in the interest of the Pakistan’s armed forces that Gen Pervez Musharraf should leave the government because the military was getting itself too much involved in the state affairs and various commercial ventures. He said MPCs had been held earlier as well which had been demanding withdrawal of the military rule and restoration of democracy and the Constitution as it existed before Oct 12, 1999.
He said all opposition parties were unanimous against the military rule but they failed to implement the MPCs’ decisions and could not take out the people to streets. They must decide it now. He said at present it was not the question who should be the next prime minister but the main issue was how to save Pakistan and solve the problems of the people.
He said the army had been killing its own people in tribal areas, including the children studying in a seminary at Bajour, which was heavily bombed. He said innocent people were labelled as Al-Qaeda agents, arrested and killed.
In his telephonic address, Mian Nawaz Sharif said Pakistan was passing through “its blackest period.” It was time for all opposition parties of all shades of opinion to take a final decision to start a movement for overthrowing the military rulers. He said Pakistan was losing its national honour and the country had been held hostage to foreign powers. He said Pervez Musharraf had made an offer to India to surrender Pakistan’s stand on implementation of UN resolutions on Kashmir while India had been rigid on its stand. He said the government was using its force against its own people and alienating them. It was not time which political party wins the next elections but it was time how to save the country. The only solution lay in restoration of genuine democracy. He said ISI and MI were being used to rig elections.
Former president Rafiq Tarar said Lahore had been playing a pivotal role in national politics in the past and it was time that its people should rise and start a movement against the military rulers and give a lead to the people of the Punjab who would lead the people of the country as a whole. He said Gen Musharraf had been calling the present assemblies consisting of “uncivilised members” and it was strange now that he intended to seek their vote for his re-election from the same members. “I make an earnest appeal to the people to come out and start a movement,” he emphasised.
Tehrik-i-Insaf chairman Imran Khan said opposition parties must unite and the proposed MPC called by the PML-N should be the last to take a final decision for ousting the military rulers. He said he would attend the conference. He said he failed to understand why Gen Musharraf had undertaken the recent tour of various Arab countries. Probably he wanted to learn from Hosni Mubarak of Egypt the secret of staying in power for a long time who had been ruling his country for the past 26 years. He enumerated four major faults of the Musharraf’s rule; erosion of Pakistan’s sovereignty and its humiliation by the US which had been violating its territories in tribal areas where Pakistan’s army had also been killing its own people, growing economic disparity, price hike, unemployment and increasing incidence of suicides due to poverty, rising gap between the federation and the provinces and the increasing grievances of the people of smaller provinces against the centre and deteriorating law and order situation in the country.
The meeting passed various resolution which demanded return of Mian Nawaz Sharif and PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto, appointment of a neutral and independent election commission, restoration of the Constitution as it existed before Oct 12, 1999, political dialogue to resolve provincial issues, condemnation of military operations in Balochistan and tribal areas, release of Makhdoom Javid Hashmi, Akhtar Mengal, Rauf Mengal and Afaq Ahmad and other political leaders and workers.
The meeting also expressed concern at price hike and a meagre cut in oil prices.
Another resolution demanded all opposition parties to attend the London MPC and called upon them to desist from back channel diplomacy or reaching any deal with the government.