Daily Times

PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry has said that Saudi Arabia, the United States and other countries have refused to support the current government.

Addressing a press conference Saturday, he also said that there was a serious crisis of leadership in the country as key positions including that of Punjab governor and State Bank of Pakistan governor had been left vacant by the present government. In the past nine days, the rupee had fallen by Rs15 against the US dollar, the stock market was falling, he said.

Fawad Chaudhry said that the government thought that they would get money from Saudi Arabia and the United States, but since the world traditionally cared for public reaction and they saw that the people had stood behind Imran Khan, they refused to support the government. He said in contrast when Imran Khan went to Saudi Arabia, China and other countries they had supported him.

The former information minister said that the current government had entered the most expensive LNG contracts and forex reserves were falling rapidly but there was no SPB governor to control the situation. “Punjab where 66% population of the country lived has no government,” he said adding that there is no water for Kharif crops and DAP price had gone up by Rs500 or Rs700 in the past few weeks.

Fawad claimed that there was no crisis in Pakistan and the country was going to stability when the Imran Khan government was removed. He said that the PTI feared that the current rulers would turn Pakistan into Sri Lanka. “Our worst opponents are also saying that the only way forward is to hold fresh elections.”

Due to this situation an administrative crisis has been created in addition to the political crisis which already existed, he said.

Speaking about PTI rally in Sialkot, Fawad Chaudhry said that it was wrong to claim that PTI was holding the rally on the land owned by the Presbyterian Church and PTI MNAs Sunila Ruth would testify to this.

He claimed that PML-N’s Khawaja Asif had held a rally at the same venue four weeks ago while Rana Sanaullah, under the previous PML-N government, had encroached on the church land and set up illegal settlements there.

He said the current government used the religion card against the opposition after the Masjid-e-Nabwi incident and in Sialkot, it has again used the religion card.

He said that arrests cannot stop the PTI’s movement and holding fresh election was the only way possible.

Former Sindh governor Imran Ismail warned that if the government disrupted any of PTI rallies the party would not spare anyone.

He said that on a single cue from Imran Khan there would be fire everywhere, but the PTI chief was observing restraint.

Ismail said that those who had supported the PML-N were regretting their decision and there was division in the PML-N as Nawaz Sharif and Maryam Nawaz favored early elections.