Sharif warns PP to mend its ways
Former premier Nawaz Sharif today warned the Pakistan People's Party-led government to mend its ways and put things straight before the people are left with no option but to come out on the streets to rid the country of the ruling set-up.
Former premier Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday warned the Pakistan People's Party-led government to mend its ways and put things straight before the people are left with no option but to come out on the streets to rid the country of the ruling set-up.
Talking to reporters at the home of senior PML-N leader Zafar Iqbal Jhagra, Sharif took a dig at President Asif Ali Zardari and alleged that Pakistan was being run according to the "aspirations of one man".
Whenever a nation is ruled by a tyrant, such rulers are destined to face destruction, he said.
"The PPP government must honour its manifesto, democratic values and the mandate given to it by the masses and put its house in order before it is too late," the PML-N chief said.
Sharif alleged that corruption was rampant in the country and the government was doing nothing to check the menace.
Corrupt practices by those at the helm of affairs were bringing a bad name to Pakistan and making it the laughing stock of the international community, he said.
He held former President Pervez Musharraf responsible for the problems being faced by the country, including terrorism, price hike and an energy shortage that has made the life of the people miserable.
"Due to the wrong policies of the dictator who was not answerable to parliament, the nation is facing threats in the shape of bomb blasts, abnormal price hike and load shedding. If security measures of the country were handled by parliament, Pakistan would not have been facing such threats," he said.
Musharraf granted permission to the US administration to carry out drone strikes in the tribal area, he alleged.
The issue of "missing persons" or those detained without charge by security agencies, especially in Balochistan, is the outcome of the wrong policies of the previous government, he said.
Asked about a meeting between top leaders of the PPP and opposition PML-Q, Sharif said the policy of crossing all limits of ethics in politics is always rejected by the people.
Politicians must give top priority to ethics or they will lose the support of people, he added.
The meeting between the PPP and PML-Q will have no effect on the PML-N-led government in Punjab, he said.
Replying to a question on Transparency International's latest report about a spike in corruption in Pakistan, Sharif said the government should take effective measures for curbing corruption and improving governance.