ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran
Khan has accused Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of offering an extension
and a promotion to Chief of Army Staff Gen Raheel Sharif because “he is
afraid of the army”.
In his post-midnight address to a
rally in the capital on Sunday, Mr Khan said, in so many words: “The
prime minister is repeatedly asking the army chief to take an extension
and become a field marshal because he fears him; [PM Sharif] has all
other institutions under his control.”
His claim came as
the capital was rife with rumours that the army chief might be promoted
to the rank of field marshal, in recognition of his success in leading
Operation Zarb-i-Azb.
Information minister dismisses claim
According to some quarters, the offer was made, but Gen
Sharif refused to accept it and decided to stick to his earlier decision
of retiring as per schedule, on Nov 29 this year.
In
January, when social media was abuzz with talk about a possible
extension for the army chief, Gen Sharif had come out with an
unequivocal statement, saying: “I do not believe in extension(s) and
will retire on the due date.”
Information Minister
Pervaiz Rashid said: “The PTI chief is known for making such
irresponsible statements,” adding that until Mr Khan revealed the source
of his information about the prime minister’s purported offer, “How can
I respond to this assertion that is based on rumours?”
A
security official told Dawn that the army chief had already announced
his decision to retire on time and only the government could explain the
rumours that had been doing the rounds over the past few weeks.
“As
far as a decision regarding an extension or promotion for the army
chief is concerned, it can only be made by the prime minister,” the
official said.
In his speech, the PTI chairman predicted
that the next Aug 14 would be the “real independence day”, when the
country would be free from the clutches of the current ruling elite who
had deprived the masses of education, health and other basic facilities
over the years.
“They win elections through fraud and
then make money in connivance with corrupt government officials as there
is no one to check them,” he alleged.
He also came down
hard on the National Accountability Bureau, saying that it only acted
against minor criminals. “Those who loot the country appoint a Federal
Board of Revenue (FBR) chairman and bring in people of their own choice
to the Election Commission to manage elections.”
Overseas
Pakistanis were willing to come back and invest in the country, but
because of rampant corruption they preferred destinations like Dubai and
Malaysia, he said.
In contrast, Mr Khan said, a minister
had been arrested in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while the father of a member
of the KP Assembly had been sent behind bars by the provincial
accountability department. “One must ask the FBR why it doesn’t act
against those named in the Panama Papers.”
Imran Khan also accused two FBR officials — Dr Irshad and Amjad Tiwana — of ‘fixing’ the tax records of the Sharif family.
Challenging
the democratic credentials of the Sharif brothers, the PTI chairman
said those who were “spoon-fed politics by military dictators, took
money from the ISI and even attacked the Supreme Court” were now giving
him sermons on democracy.
He supported the military
establishment’s assertion that the National Action Plan (NAP) against
terrorism couldn’t achieve the desired results because the government
had failed to fulfil its commitments about NAP.
Mr Khan
said the federal government had failed to bring reforms to the Federally
Administered Tribal Areas, or streamline seminaries.
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