ISLAMABAD: The Paki stan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) spokesperson on Saturday said the unwavering commitment by the Pakistan Army to find out a lasting and durable solution to challenges facing the country, while staying within its ‘constitutional limits’, was commendable. However, he emphasized that the attempts to make freedom of speech a punishable crime and to label it as ‘digital terrorism’ were neither in the interest of the country nor the state institutions. Reacting to the 265th Corps Commanders Conference’s communiqué, the PTI spokesperson said currently, Pakistan was grappling with all these challenges mainly due to the deviation from the Constitution, the illegal use of force against citizens and the prioritization of personal interests over national interests. He warned that the destructive decision-making process, inadequate information and policies revolving around personal opinion and interests, instead of national interests, were proving to be deadly for the country and the nation. The spokesperson continued that constitutionally, after the sovereignty of Allah, the powers vested with the people and they had the basic right to criticize the state decisions and their policies constructively. He made it clear that the attempts to make freedom of speech a punishable crime and to label it as ‘digital terrorism’ were neither in the interest of the country nor the state institutions because it would open the door to use extra-legal
l measures against critics. He advised that the culture of taking the criticism of people and political parties in a constructive manner was indispensable to get the country out of crises instead of considering their decisions as divine orders. The PTI spokesperson made it clear that no army in the world could succeed against any challenge without the support and backing of its people, adding that the state institutions could only achieve true success by respecting the will of people and giving the Constitution its due place.