Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman Wednesday maintained that toppling the current government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is their ‘national duty’.
“Can you accept this government? Is it not our national duty to topple such a government?” he asked the participants of the sit-in during his address. “They say we cannot be expected to give people jobs. So you lied just to get votes? You lied to mislead the youth? This government established under falsehood is no longer acceptable,” he declared
Fazl said further time cannot be given to the government as it can lead to further deterioration in the country’s situation. He people cannot get justice in Pakistan. “There is no justice in the country. NAB is helpless when it comes to holding the government accountable in Pakistan,” he said.
Fazl said he and his workers have come to Islamabad to save the country and that is what they will do. “We want a constitutional government which truly reflects the constitution of Pakistan,” he said. “If these unqualified people present the next budget, then God forbid, the country will collapse,” he said.
At the start of the address, Fazl lauded the workers for bracing rain and cold weather with sheer resilience. “This gathering is for those who stand firmly behind their stance,” said Fazl to the crowd, adding that the sit-in is not for ‘spectators’ but for the resolute ones.
During the speech, Fazl announced that the protest will continue in a resolute manner. “The Seerat-un-Nabi Conference will also be held here at 12 Rabi-ul-Awwal,” he announced.
Fazl said the anti-government sit-in has been staged with a view to fulfill a national responsibility and for which much effort and resilience has been exercised so far by the participants. “It is not as if we are holding a mujra (dance performance) here each night. With the grace of God, there are respectable people sitting here. They have not come here to indulge in debauchery. My decency does not permit me to repeat the scenes we all witnessed in Islamabad in the past (sit-ins).” He said.
The JUI-F chief said the government will have to withdraw the presidential reference filed against Supreme Court’s Justice Qazi Faez Isa. He said the message sent out through the reference against Justice Isa is that ‘a judge who gives a verdict based on justice which happens to be against the interests of the rulers will be sent home through references’.
Meanwhile, Punjab Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi met JUI-F chief at his residence in Islamabad for the third time in two days to discuss in detail the peaceful conclusion of the ‘Azadi March’.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, the PML-Q leader said efforts are in place to take the protest demonstration to its logical conclusion peacefully. He said ‘positive progress’ is being made in talks between the government and the opposition regarding the Azadi March.
