Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Khawaja Saad Rafique on Friday demanded an end to “the snakes and ladders game played for the past 71 years” and called on the government to take all parties on board to uphold democracy.

He was speaking on the floor of the National Assembly on his first appearance at the Parliament since his arrest by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) earlier this month. Rafique criticised the NAB Ordinance of 1999, saying it was a black law which was promulgated by former rulers to make politicians switch loyalties. “The NA speaker’s decision added to the house’s sanctity,” he said, and added that it would have been better if the production orders were issued on the first day without wasting six days.

He said he and his brother had been accused of setting up an illegal housing society. No evidence thus far had been produced against him despite his arrest, he asserted. Rafique claimed, “The scoreboard of arrests awaits more members of the PML-N and PPP.” He said the PML-N and PPP had never tried to unseat the PTI. Controlling the opposition by branding them as thieves and robbers won’t help. Rather, it will create problems for the government, he warned. “Revenge and ego are the biggest obstacles in Pakistan’s progress,” he said, and added he had suffered the anguish of prison but he didn’t wish it upon others.

The PML-N leader warned that if the government would try to arrest Asif Ali Zardari, the political situation would go from bad to worse. He advised the ruling party to refrain from any such move. He admitted that he was not satisfied with the transparency of accountability even during PML-N’s tenure, and said the “snake and ladders game being played for the past 71 years needs to end.”

“Mr Speaker, allow me to say this, I’m not among those people who want PTI’s turn to come next,” he said, adding that he had “suspicion that some of your people will be arrested to balance out political victimisation. This isn’t right. Nobody should dare force me to become an informer against my political opponents,” the former railways minister said.

“Sometimes we are declared traitors, other times, we are labeled anarchists. Who are these people who think of only themselves as patriots?” he questioned. “We have suffered jail, it’s nothing new for us. But it’s our wish that other politicians should not be made to suffer similarly.”

Rafique called on all opposition parties, the government, the judiciary and the establishment to assess the direction in which the country was headed. “Our real competition is not amongst ourselves, it’s against poverty and the economic crisis,” he stressed. He urged the government to take all political parties on board to strengthen the charter of democracy.

Responding to Rafique’s statement, PTI’s Murad Saeed claimed that NAB was not under the control of the government. He also said that the PML-N was involved in political victimisation of other parties in the past. He went on to say that PML-N leaders had always wanted judges of their own. The minister asked why didn’t the PML-N amend the NAB law when it was in power. Meanwhile, the House unanimously passed a resolution which called for improving the mechanism of registration of every new born child, provision of food protection to mother and child and clean drinking water, and facilitation in child enrolment in schools. The resolution also urged to make child abuse and abrogation of their rights as inhuman acts.

The resolution was presented by Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan.

Earlier, Minister for Petroleum Division Ghulam Sarwar Khan said that since it had come into power, the incumbent government had given a subsidy of Rs20 billion on petroleum products.

Replying to a question, the Minister said the government did not pass on the increase in international oil prices to consumers accordingly. He said a Rs12 billion subsidy had been given this month alone. The Minister said gas worth Rs45 billion was unaccounted for in the last five years due to pilferage and leakage. He said Sui Southern and Sui Northern both gas companies have been directed to take adequate measures to overcome the gas losses.

The House has now been prorogued after the conclusion of business.

Published in Daily Times, December 22^nd 2018.