ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan on Friday said that while he accepted and respected the decision of the Supreme Court after it restored the assembly and allowed the vote of no-confidence against him, he will not tolerate the installation of a "foreign government" in Pakistan.
Reiterating his stance on the no-confidence motion during a live telecast, he said that he will never accept an “imported government” and will look up to the public for their decision.
The premier said that while he respected the decision of the Supreme Court regarding the restoration of the National Assembly, he is "saddened" by the verdict.
Recalling the time when he was arrested, the premier said that he strongly believes that the judiciary is the guardian of justice in the country.
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The premier said that while he respected the country's judiciary, however, he complained that the Supreme Court should have at least initiated the probe on the “foreign conspiracy” matter.
"I respect the Supreme Court and the judiciary, but the apex court should have looked at the threat letter before issuing the verdict," he said.
'Disappointed'
PM Imran Khan further complained that the apex court did not take the matter of the “threat letter” as seriously as it should have been taken.
He further said that the decision on Article 63 (A), regarding horse-trading, also added to his disappointment.
“The youth of Pakistan is our future and if they see leaders selling their conscience, what precedent are we setting for them?” he asked, adding that even MNAs who came on reserved seats have become sellouts.
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He said that nations must stand against wrong, otherwise, nobody can protect them if they don’t raise their voices against the corruption and other evils prevalent in the country.
Speaking about the “threat letter”, he explained what a cipher is — a coded message sent by embassies to their country — adding that this message cannot be shared with the media and public because if these codes are unveiled, all secret information of Pakistan will be unveiled.
He said that during the meeting between the Pakistani ambassador and the US official, the latter complained that he "should not have visited Russia”.
PM Imran Khan maintained that even before the no-confidence motion was filed against him, the US official had warned the Pakistani ambassador that if Imran Khan manages to save himself from the motion then Pakistan will have to face “severe consequences”.
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The premier mentioned that the US official knew beforehand that a no-confidence motion was to be submitted against him, adding that they also knew who would come to power if the Opposition manages to oust him.
Criticising the US official for his arrogance, he said that the official told the ambassador that if Imran Khan is ousted, Pakistan will be spared no matter who takes the charge.
PM Imran Khan levelled allegations against PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif and said the had apparently prepared his sherwani for the oath-taking ceremony — as a result of being involved in this “foreign conspiracy”.
“It is so shameful for the 220 million people of Pakistan that a foreign official is ordering the sitting prime minister of the country through a third person, warning of severe consequences and alluring them of forgiveness if I [Imran Khan] leave the office,” he said.
He further added that when details related to the letter were revealed, it was disclosed that US diplomats were meeting the MNAs.
“Two of my own ministers informed me that the US officials knew about the no-confidence motion against me months before it was submitted,” he said, adding that it gradually occurred to him that this was all “pre-planned and scripted.”
Taking a jibe at Shahbaz’s statement regarding “beggars are not choosers”, he said that “It is important for the nation to decide at the moment that do we want to live as an independent state or do we want to accept slavery.”
“If the West knows anybody in the country, that's me,” he said, elaborating on the reasons why the US is against him.
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“When they saw my profile, they realised that I was the one who raised his voice against the drone attacks and the Iraq War,” the premier said, adding that he was the only one who constantly raised his voice against the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.
“All this drama is being staged to remove one person [Imran Khan] because the West has realised that they cannot control my actions and I will not become its slave,” he maintained.
Comparing himself with the bigwigs of the Opposition, PM Imran Khan alleged that unlike him, PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif, and PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari are ready to sacrifice anything in order to save their money.
"That is why they want to come back to power.”
“We need to make a decision right now about what we want as a nation,” he said while highlighting practices followed in India. He mentioned that India got its independence from Britain at the same time as Pakistan but still, none of the superpowers has the audacity to speak against it.
“I am not against any country; however, my focus is on the interest of my people. I will first see the betterment of my people and will then look at ties with other countries,” he said.
“When you take money from someone, they do not respect you,” he asserted, adding that the Opposition leaders are dragging the PTI into a “war for dollars.”
“We are not a nation that can be used like tissue papers,” the premier said, maintaining that Pakistan does not want unilateral relations with any country.
He said: “They [the Opposition] want to get rid of the corruption cases registered against them.”
The premier further asked that if the Opposition is so confident then why are they afraid of holding elections.
PM Imran Khan urged the nation to come out of their homes on Sunday after Isha prayers for a peaceful protest.
“All the people should come out of their houses to protest against the ‘foreign-funded drama’ and I will be there with you as I will never accept this foreign conspiracy against Pakistan,” he concluded.
The prime minister faces being booted from office at the weekend after the Supreme Court's ruling that parliament had been illegally dissolved and a no-confidence vote on his government must go ahead.
PM Imran Khan's coalition lost its majority in the National Assembly last week, but he avoided being dismissed when the deputy speaker blocked a no-confidence motion against him and the president dissolved parliament and ordered fresh elections.
The premier claimed the Opposition had colluded with the United States for "regime change" when the deputy speaker — a member of PTI — refused to allow the no-confidence motion.
Simultaneously, Khan asked President Arif Alvi — who is also a PTI loyalist — to dissolve the assembly.
The decision — which the court said was unanimous — was met with jubilation by Opposition supporters in the capital, with packed cars racing through the streets, sounding their horns.
There had been high hopes from PM Imran Khan when he was elected in 2018 on a promise of sweeping away decades of entrenched corruption and cronyism, but he struggled to maintain support with soaring inflation, a feeble rupee and crippling debt.