• PM says PTI protest caused daily losses of Rs190 billion; economy cannot handle frequent disruptions
• Asserts that decisive action after May 9 riots could have built deterrence against violent protests
• Expresses gratitude to army chief, law enforcers for their support in quelling demonstration

ISLAMABAD: After a days-long march by the PTI on the federal capital brought the city to a standstill, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednes­day asserted the government would show zero tolerance in the future as he vowed to put an end to the repeated sit-ins and marches on Islamabad for the sake of stability.

In an address during the meeting of the federal cabinet, the premier said they had to take strict measures to quell such scenes in the future as they could no longer put all their resources and energies into stopping such demonstrations. The PTI rally, after three days, fizzled out last night after a crackdown by the law enforcement.

“As a prime minister, the chief executive, [and] as members of the cabinet and parliamentarians…[we] will not let that coterie of anarchy inflict further harm on the country’s economy,” PM Shehbaz added.

The recent protest caused Rs190 billion in daily damages to the national economy, affecting the country’s exports and imports, he said, adding that for personal interests, the PTI leadership was damaging the country’s interests, which ‘is a bigger crime and will not be forgiven’.

He said that the cabinet meeting had only one-point agenda: to discuss the current situation emerging after repeated assaults on the capital by a political party. The PM said they could no longer sap their energy and resources in confronting them, stressing that the government would not let it happen again.

It would not happen, not under their watch, he said, adding, “We will steer Pakistan out of the challenges.”

The premier said the protests caused huge economic losses: businesses were closed, traders were perturbed, owners of the factories were in distress, and daily wagers even found it hard to get a one-time meal. The patients were also stranded because of the protest, he added.

In the larger context, the economic losses were manifolds; the country’s stock exchange market, which had crossed the historic mark of 99,000 points a few days back, lost 4,000 points in one day due to the chaos, he said, adding, “These miscreants have become the permanent enemies of Pakistan’s progress.”

The directive of Islamabad High Court was torn up into pieces as a person was hell bent on putting the country at stake for his vested interests, the PM added.

The prime minister regretted that such a trend of upheavals and attacks was not a norm prior to 2014 because none of the political parties had ever thought of mounting attacks on the federal capital. He also referred to the 2014 sit-in by the PTI, due to which the visit of the Chinese president was postponed. The PM went on to refer to the protest on the eve of the SCO summit in October as well as during the visit of the Saudi delegation.

About the recent visit of the president of Belarus, the premier said that they were taking decisions to enhance bilateral ties and cooperation between the two countries, but on the other hand, there were scenes of battles.

The prime minister said that they could no longer waste their energies to tackle these spectacles on a daily basis and added that there was a need to introspect as to why the country was still mired in foreign debts even after the passage of 77 years.

May 9 punishments

PM Shehbaz said the miscreants had also injured and killed security personnel during the recent protest, adding that no patriotic citizen or even a resident of the country could imagine harming the country for their personal interests or going to such extremes.

He opined that had the suspects involved in the May 9 riots been given exemplary punishments by the courts, such spectacles would not have happened.

The prime minister also appreciated the Islamabad, Punjab, and Sindh police and other law enforcement agencies for quelling the protests, particularly expressing gratitude to the army chief for his cooperation with regard to the law and order situation. The prime minister said all the law enforcement agencies had collectively and with good strategy dispersed the protest and provided relief to the public.

Speaking about the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the PM said that in KP, terrorism was on the rise while in Kurram, dozens of people were killed, but instead of focusing on the law and order situation in the province, the provincial government had left the residents in the lurch and led an armed attack on Islamabad.

In a veiled reference to the PTI, he said it pained them that Pakistan was saved from default due to the coalition government’s efforts. The coalition parties had put their political interests at stake to save the country, he said, adding that over the last eight months, the economy was on the path to recovery.

Earlier, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said all the bold claims and plans of PTI had been shattered following their failed protest. In a late-night press conference, the minister had described the protest as a ‘colossal failure,’ emphasising that it had become the inevitable fate of the PTI.

Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2024