ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Climate Change, Senator Sherry Rehman said that Imran Khan’s refusal to attend the All Parties Conference (APC) called by the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reflects his priorities do not align with Pakistan’s security and interests.
Minister Rehman said,”As Pakistan goes through a time of great crisis, it is unfortunate to witness that Imran Khan continues to act out a narrative that has lost its relevance & credibility. By calling the APC, the coalition government is trying to bring the country’s political leadership on one-page to discuss collective strategies to overcome the challenges the country is facing, but Khan’s politics of polarization only diminishes the national unity needed to fight national threats, particularly terrorism, on which he still signals ambiguity.”
She continued, “Imran’s refusal to attend the Committee Meeting held in Governor House Peshawar to discuss the Peshawar Mosque tragedy anti-terror meetings in Peshawar and the APC in Islamabad, that no party has ever refused in the past, no matter how deep the political differences, reflects Imran Khan’s selfish brand of politics. He has once again shown that PTIs politics is more important than saving Pakistan. For him this was an opportunity that narcissism squandered.”
The Minister stated that Imran Khan now says that he is not answerable for the current crisis because he is not in power anymore, despite the fact that PTI ruled in KP for the last eight years.
“Imran Khan thinks he can be acquitted by blaming others every time. Our government didn’t call Osama bin Laden a martyr, gave presidential pardon to convicted terrorists, or negotiated with the terrorists. All this happened under the disastrous tenure of PTI, for which innocent Pakistani citizens are now paying the price,” she said.
She concluded, “Pakistan has already paid a heavy price against terrorism over the last two decades, with more than 80,000 Pakistanis losing their lives to this war. We will not allow the terrorists who have killed our soldiers, civilians, police, and leaders like Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Shaheed to raise their heads again in Pakistan.
“If Imran Khan continues to express differences on countering terrorism or refusing to renew national resolve to fight terror, he is basically continuing to convey a policy of tolerance for non-state actors. This policy of his might be totally expedient for his own ‘extremism-friendly’ politics, but it will be disastrous for Pakistan.”
