ISLAMABAD, Mar 15 (APP):Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain, ruling out any compromise on voting right to overseas Pakistanis, on Tuesday said the issue was real cause of friction between the government and opposition.
“As of now, there is the main disagreement between the government and
opposition as they contend nine million Pakistanis living abroad, have no right to vote [in the country’s election] while we say they (expats) are far more entitled to cast the vote,” he said, while addressing the three-day Overseas Pakistanis Convention.
He said, had overseas Pakistanis not sent huge remittances to the country, its
economy would have bankrupted.
“Me, as a Pakistani citizen, wants to extend heartfelt gratitude to you people who stand by us and hold our hand. Believe me, we are grateful to you and I also assure you that we either out of political consideration or in any government, will never retreat from our stated stand of giving you your right… we will help you get your right,” the minister categorically stated.
He said it was the right of the expats to cast vote in the country and Prime Minister Imran Khan and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government would ensure it all cost.
Fawad said this was the fear which haunted the opposition, bent upon
depriving the overseas Pakistanis of their due voting right.
The minister said that PTI’s stance was that a Pakistani living in any part
of the world, should proudly say that he or she was a Pakistani.
He said that unfortunately no past ruler ever adopted such a stance, but
now the nation had trust in itself, and its leadership, thanks to the narrative.
He said undoubtedly dignity of Pakistanis had enhanced rapidly during PTI
rule across the world and policies of Prime Minister Imran Khan did play a vital
role in this regard .
Fawad said that now Pakistanis proudly carried the green passport and had
a solemn declaration that Imran Khan was their prime minister.
In a critical note for Nawaz Sharif, he said that a former PM used to carry talking
points on various papers and got confused before the then US president.
On the contrary, when Prime Minister Imran Khan held talks with world
leaders, the nation was fully sure that he would uphold dignity of the country.
He said Imran Khan was the sole political leader, enjoying overwhelming support
in all four provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir and recent public meetings in Mailsi, Hafizabad and Buner, affirmed the fact.
He said that Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari could not have a walk in a park, how could they address such big public rallies. Criticizing Asif Zardari, he said that Ziaul Haq despite his best efforts, could not damage the PPP, but Zardari ruined the party of great leaders Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto within a few years.
Fawad said that Nawaz Sharif was the political heir of Zia but he did
not have courage to condemn the sloganeering of PPP activists at the
grave of his mentor during the recent long march.
