Pakistan’s national interests were attacked on May 9 in what has been called the country’s “9/11.” According to Iqbal, the PTI’s subversive actions were being celebrated by Pakistan’s foes.
ISLAMABAD:
On Sunday, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal described the riots on May 9 as “9/11 type” attacks on Pakistan’s national interests.
Protests turned violent in Pakistan after the May 9 arrest of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) head Imran Khan in connection with a corruption investigation.
Iqbal told APP exclusively that it was unfortunate that “workers of a political party on May 9 stormed and destroyed many symbols of Pakistan’s pride, including Jinnah House, Yadgare Shuhada, fighter jets of the famous 1965 war, and a model of the Chagai mountain.”
He insisted that the outcry over Imran’s detention on corruption charges was “unprecedented irrational, unacceptable, and not less than the 9/11 attacks carried out in the US in 2001.”
“What happened on May 9 was like September 11 for the Pakistani military. The political party’s aggressive supporters desecrated Pakistani history and embarrassed the country’s security forces. He remarked, “The Jinnah House wasn’t just the home of a Corps Commander; it was also a legacy of the father of the nation.”
A shattered statue of Captain Karnal Sher Khan Shaheed was another loss for the party, and he said, “If they have broken the fighter jets of 1965 war, [it means] they have attacked the pride of Pakistan Air Force attained by defeating the enemy in the air war.”
The minister also claimed that a replica of Chagai Mountain had been burned to the ground because it served as a reminder of the nuclear tests conducted by Chinese scientists that rendered the country’s defences impregnable.
“There seems to be a scheme/method behind this madness,” the president said, “as all such symbols were targeted selectively which had a link either with national heritage or were the pride of the Armed Forces.”
To paraphrase what he said: “So, these people too do not deserve any mercy as they have attacked the national heritage and pride of the Armed Forces,” adding that legal actions based on proof will be begun against those responsible for the subversive acts.
Destroyers of civilian property will face prosecution under civil law, while attackers on military sites will face prosecution under the Army Act.
He said, “Thus we made our enemies happy and brought tears to the eyes of our nation.” in reference to the PTI’s alleged subversive activities.
“PTI Anticipated a Climate Similar to Sri Lanka”
According to a senior leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), “the national kitty was empty and the finance ministry was unable to release development funds for the last quarter of the fiscal year 2021-2, which happened for the first time in the country’s history due to failed economic policies of the past regime of PTI.” This was said when the coalition government came to power in December of last year.
He said that the PTI’s leadership had anticipated a Sri Lanka-like catastrophe within days, but that the present administration, led by the dynamic Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, had taken decisive efforts to confront the issue and had significantly streamlined the country’s operations. The government’s “tough decision” is starting to pay off, he said.
According to him, disastrous floods hit most of Pakistan’s districts last year, costing the government over $30 billion; nonetheless, the government still began restoration and rehabilitation efforts in the hit areas, despite financial constraints.
Iqbal blamed the PTI’s four-year administration for the country’s high inflation rate, saying it has harmed investment flowing into Pakistan as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects.
According to him, the previous government set the stage for inflation by devaluing the rupee against the dollar and allowing $80 billion in imports in its final year to demonstrate phoney growth and favour cronies through the issuance of import licences.
He said that the current government had repaired ties with friendly countries that had been severed under PTI leadership and began the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) halted programme.
Iqbal added that the CPEC would be transformative not just for Pakistan but for the entire region.
He said that during the previous PML-N administration, China invested over $29 billion in Pakistan’s energy, infrastructure, Gwadar development, Thar, and Hydel projects.
He went on to say that “Pakistan was expecting $30-50 billion investment during the next five-seven years in diverse fields if the CPEC projects would have continued at the pace of 2017-18,” but that “as soon as the PTI government came to power in 2018, CPEC was targeted by putting all projects on the back-burner under negative propaganda.”
He did say that the current government was working to bring CPEC back to life; just recently, Prime Minister Shehbaz and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi opened a border market and a 100-megawatt transmission line for Gwadar, both of which will help to boost trade in the deep seaport city.
He remarked, “This project was started in 2018, but the previous incompetent government also sabotaged it,” and went on to say that the current government has finished other projects, such as bringing water and power to Gwadar.
The Government’s Main Focus Is on Gwadar
Iqbal stated that the Imran-led administration committed criminal negligence by not completing the annual dredging of the Gwadar port, and he further stated that a contract for dredging the port had been given for Rs 4.5 billion so that large cargo ships could dock there.
To help fishermen make a living and contribute to national prosperity, he added, the government has initiated a Rs800 million scheme to provide them with modern boats.
The minister also underlined the importance of developing industries along modern lines in order to steer the economy in the correct path, which would ultimately lead to a thriving society.
He stated that the current government was making determined efforts to build a framework based on the five Es (Exports, E-Pakistan, Equity, Energy, and Environment) in order to get Pakistan out of its financial crisis and onto a stable footing.
To meet the development budget in the current economic scenario, he said, is the current government’s largest problem.
He suggested that in the next budget, the government would prioritise projects that were close to completion and would emphasise strengthening the nation’s seaports, enhancing its communication infrastructure, bolstering its higher education and IT sectors, and revitalising agriculture, which was once the backbone of the country’s economy thanks to the Green Revolution-2.
