Daily Times

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) constituted ‘special committees’ to devise some comprehensive strategy in order to form governments in Centre, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after emerging as leading political party in general elections.

Surprisingly, members of these committees have been kept as “top secret”.

“The PTI’s Core Committee, apex decision making body of the party, has decided to set up special committees to develop strategy to form government in Centre, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” reads a statement issued by PTI central media department.

However, not a single name has been mentioned in the released details. An insider told Daily Times while wishing anonymity that the core committee of the view that the said committees should be kept confidential at this stage. “It will be public definitely later on,” he said. When contacted, PTI spokesperson Raoof Hassan denied to comment over the issue. Moreover, the participants of the meeting agreed to the early completion of the nomination process for important government and parliamentary positions in the light of the recommendations and strategies proposed by the committees.

Earlier, party chief Barrister Gohar Ali said in a statement that it was decided “in principle” that the PTI will never get any kind of alliance with PML-N or PPP. Instead, he said, party can explore options to ally or merge with another political party. Because, according to him, they don’t feel comfortable with both of them.

“There will be no talks with anyone to make a government or to make a government together with them. It is better to sit in the opposition than to make a government with them, but we think we have the majority,” he said. He reiterated that if its mandate was not accepted, the party would form a strong opposition. Furthermore, the core committee lauded the people of the country for demonstrating political maturity through their power of vote on February 8.

It said that people of Pakistan, through their votes, gave PTI Founding Chairman Imran Khan an unprecedented certificate of patriotism and awarded his party with a clear majority. They made it clear that the party would strongly resist any undemocratic, illegal, apolitical and immoral attempts at all levels to hand over the reign of Pakistan to the criminals by stealing the public mandate.

The participants stated that the ongoing talks among the people rejected minority groups regarding formation of government were an open contempt of the public mandate and their clear verdict. The PTI Core Committee vowed that they would pursue those who undermined democracy and violated the sanctity of the vote inside and outside of the parliament.

They went on to say that voices were being raised against the poll fraud in and outside of the country because the public mandate was being brutally insulted.

The forum highlighted that political parties of national level including Jamaat-e-Islami were raising serious questions about the criminal role of the electoral body and the lack of transparency of the elections.

The PTI Core Committee said that the returning officers (ROs), who had committed serious electoral frauds like polluting the elections and violating the transparent public mandate were national criminals and the people would hold them accountable for their crimes.