KARACHI: Senator Sirajul Haq, chief of the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI), has said there is a need to strengthen democracy in the country to the extent that any attempt to roll it back is crushed.

“Politics, democracy and assemblies in Pakistan are hostage to the corrupt aristocracy and can only be freed by the people through the power of their ballots, which is the solution to all our ills,” he said at Meet the Press programme of the Karachi Press Club on Saturday.

He said the current situation demanded a positive role from the leadership of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, PML-N and PPP for pulling the country out of troubled waters as the people were “facing not only armed, but also economic and political terrorism”.

He said there was need to eliminate poverty, unemployment, loadshedding and price hike and to create a just society.

Senator Haq said the biggest issue for the people was rule of law because instead of merit a culture of corruption and nepotism was pervasive in every field. Had the rule of law been ensured, all those enjoying luxurious lifestyles would have found themselves in prison.

The class, he said, whose members changed parties before every election to protect their vested interests was proving to be the main hurdle in the progress of the country.

The JI chief said only those political parties should be allowed to contest elections whose members elected their office-bearers under the supervision of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

Referring to the by-election in the National Assembly constituency NA-246, where the Jamaat has fielded Rashid Nasim as its candidate, he said the people of Karachi would get an opportunity on April 23 to bring about real change in their city.

He said the people of Karachi had supported the Muttahida Qaumi Movement for the past 24 years, but the party had failed to solve their problems of water, electricity, education, health and law and order.

He said a trend of extortion and dumping of bodies in gunny bags had afflicted the city for the past 30 years. Terrorism must now be eliminated from Karachi.

He termed a statement of former MQM legislator Nabeel Gabol about his surprise over getting more than 140,000 votes in the last general elections “his confession about massive rigging in the NA-246 constituency during the 2013 elections”.

He asked whether the judicial commission investigating allegations of rigging in the elections required any further proof after this ‘confession’.

Mr Haq appealed to the ECP to take notice of an overnight incident in Liaquatabad area that took place during the electoral activities of his party.

The JI leader said the government should act as a mediator in the Saudi-Yemen conflict and a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation should be convened in Islamabad to resolve the matter.

He said that if any attempt was made to harm Saudi Arabia, the Pakistani nation would come forward to foil it.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2015

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