ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Wednesday called for empowering politicians and adopting a political path to address the grievances of the people of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

It would be a folly to deem parliament, political parties and political leadership unnecessary for the country, the JUI-F chief warned while addressing the National Assembly.

Calling for an end to military’s dominance in civil domain, the Maulana said, “Becoming Faisal­abad’s Clock Tower and Amrat Dhara (panacea) can be a wish, but not the solution to the issue.”

He asked if the government had the power and capability to take decisions at its own.

JUI-F chief offers his services on issues linked with national security

He advised the government to take opposition in confidence and hold dialogue with the estranged people.

“I still believe that if parliament is requested to step forward and go and talk to the people of Balochistan and KP, then the situation can be reverted to normal,” he remarked.

It seemed the government had lost writ in the Balochistan and KP areas, where armed people were ruling and collecting taxes and toll fee, he remarked. “They are going to villages, patrolling the streets, and are armed with rocket launchers and special equipment,” he said.

Pointing out that both sides had taken extreme positions, he said, “One party goes to the extent of talking about separation, while the other vows to deal with them with full force and to go to any extent to protect the state.” He said such attitudes only raised questions over the country’s security.

Referring to the Aug 26 coordinated terrorist attacks in Balochistan, the JUI-F chief regretted that parliament had “not taken matters seriously”. He said prominent, sagacious and experienced political leadership was being sidelined despite the fact that politicians could resolve such issues.

Proxy war

He noted that Pakistan had become a battleground for a proxy war (between the US and China). He said obstacles had been created in the way of megaprojects planned under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Terrorism had caused issues that could not be overlooked, he said, adding that there were certain pockets where schools were shut and national flags could not be hoisted.

He was of the opinion that development work was no more possible across the entire swathes from the areas of Balochistan up to Dera Ismail Khan.

He said he would continue to criticise the government and fight against the ruling coalition over its alleged anti-people policies, but he would be ready to offer his services on all issues linked with national security.

Missing persons

Referring to the issue of missing persons, the JUI-F chief said some families were still waiting for their loved ones who had gone missing some 20 years ago. They were unaware if those missing persons were dead or alive or whether they were in jail or had fled the country, he said. “Wherever they are, it is the government’s responsibility to inform their family of their whereabouts,” the Maulana asserted.

Talking about the issue of the provinces’ right to their resources, the JUI-F leader said people should be assured through actions that the Constitution would be followed and “under the 18th Amendment, these resources are yours. The state has no right to go and occupy them”.

“I want the nation to trust the army, but such actions are eroding that trust,” he said, alleging that a person arrested a year before the Army Public School attack was among those hanged over the incident.

Fact-finding mission

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan also stressed the need to address the grievances of people and suggested that a fact-finding mission should visit the areas of Balochistan to help tackle the situation.

He also proposed formation of a committee to talk to the people of Balochistan.

He said that resignation tendered by veteran politician Akhtar Mengal from the National Assembly must be taken seriously.

Even the chief minister and his cabinet members could “not go out of the Red Zone”, he claimed.

He said the Baloch youth did not want to talk to them as they believed they were “compromised”. He said the grievances of the people of Balochistan were 100 per cent genuine. “They had not been pushed to wall, rather had been immured in the wall,” he remarked.

Claiming that the government did not want to talk to those whom the authorities called terrorists, the PTI leader wondered how the federation would work.

He alleged that there was a lack of interest by the government in resolving the issue. The PTI leader said: “The tragedy is that dictation is taken from elsewhere.” He also talked about the “persecution” being faced by his party, saying the PTI leaders were being abducted and implicated in false cases.

He alleged that PTI founding chairman Imran Khan and other leaders, including Shah Mehmood Qureshi and Dr Yasmin Rashid, were jailed in fictitious cases.

Rejecting the allegation of PTI’s involvement in May 9 attacks, Omar Ayub challenged that a video to substantiate the accusation must be produced before a court of law.

Referring to the recent attempted abduction of a man from Peshawar, he said it emerged later that an “illegal operation” had been carried out by the counterterrorism department of Punjab police. On this issue, he sought not only an apology from the Punjab chief minister but also legal action against IGP Dr Usman Anwar and other officials.

He complained against the media blackout of parliamentary proceedings whenever opposition leaders spoke on important issues. In this regard, he cited the instance when a question was asked about the expenditure of the defence ministry, in the context of audit reports, which were to be taken up by the Public Accounts Committee.

He raised the issue of enforced disappearances and said even the treasury members representing Balochistan could not talk on such issues or else they might become missing persons themselves.

Published in Dawn, September 5th, 2024