Opposition moot blames govt for ‘political instability, economic crisis’

ISLAMABAD: The opposition parties Thursday blamed, what they called, the unrepresentative government which came into power through “stolen elections” for the country’s political instability, despair, and economic hardships.

The opposition parties’ two-day conference in a declaration issued here emphasised that the current parliament lacked moral, political and legal legitimacy, and demanded the abolition of all amendments contradicting the spirit of the Constitution, including those to the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca). The declaration was issued at the conclusion of the eventful moot.

The conference faced significant hurdles, with some opposition leaders having to scale the locked gates of the hotel venue. Former prime minister and convener of the Awam Pakistan party Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was among those stopped by police from entering. Despite the obstacles, opposition leaders managed to enter the hotel, while a heavy police contingent remained deployed outside.

According to the declaration, in view of the unrepresentative government formed through “stolen elections and the resulting political instability, despair, economic hardships and deteriorating public order in the provinces”, all the opposition parties of the country participated in the conference at the invitation of Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Mehmood Khan Achakzai.

Besides the opposition political parties, intellectuals from civil society, the media and journalist community, senior lawyers and their representative organisations from across the country also participated in the conference.

Participants expressed deep concern over the deteriorating situation in Pakistan and proposed solutions to address the crisis. The declaration highlighted the following key points:

The declaration said that all the opposition political parties and other participants were in complete agreement on one point, and that is the country cannot move forward without ensuring the supremacy of the Constitution and protecting its sanctity, without ensuring the rule of law, and in the absence of a credible justice system.

Participants of the moot fully agreed on the following points:

The solution to the country’s problems lies solely in the supremacy of Constitution and the rule of law; the results of the rigged elections of February 8, 2024 are responsible for the current political, economic and social crisis in the country; the existence of the current parliament has no moral, political and legal status; the declaration demanded the abolition of all amendments that contradict the spirit of the Constitution; the rampant violation of constitutional human rights is a complete negation of the rule of law in the country and a clear proof of the fascism of this unrepresentative government; the Constitution does not allow any Pakistani citizen to be harassed, arrested or imprisoned for participating in political activity and all political prisoners should be released immediately; they demanded the abolition of the Peca amendments made to silence the public and the media; the grievances and complaints of the people of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh, especially the distribution of water resources, should be in accordance with the 1991 Water Accord, which requires urgent attention and without resolving them, the deteriorating public order situation in the country cannot be handled.

“The only solution to the current crisis in the country is free, transparent and fair election. Today, the deteriorating situation demands that the national leadership of the country, putting aside its own circumstances and issues, formulate a unified strategy to stabilise Pakistan and put it on the path of development through a national dialogue and ensure its implementation,” they said.

The opposition parties pledged to continue their collective struggle to implement the provisions of the declaration, emphasizing that the effort would persist until Pakistan’s problems are resolved and the welfare of its people ensured.

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan criticised the government for obstructing the conference and labeled it a “regime of Form 47” without a public mandate. He called for rallies in Balochistan and emphasized the need to address the issue of missing persons and unpaid dues to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

“We also fought the case of missing persons before the Chief Justice of Pakistan. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s dues should be paid by the federal government. Only political prisoners are being put in jail in this country. We have gathered here for the supremacy of the Constitution and law. The definition of the state is clearly written in Article 7,” he noted.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan said that not a single party out of 175 political parties spoke in their favour, while Jamaat-e-Islami was the only party that returned their seat in Karachi.

Addressing the conference, he said that “our mandate was stolen in the elections while the PTI does not believe in power sharing, the party founder believes in people’s power that is why he is in jail.”

Gohar said that they had not reached any agreement with Maulana Fazlur Rehman on the 26th amendment. “We are grateful to Maulana for supporting us. The PTI has been witnessing all this for the past two years. Today, we have to forget everything and prepare a plan for the future. The 26th amendment should be revoked,” he said.

He said that it is definitely written in the Constitution that the term will be five years, the Constitution also says that re-elections could be held considering the country’s conditions.

PTI Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said that different parties continue to gain power through the powerful while many mistakes were made in the past, now let’s not dwell the past. He said that the privacy of residences was trampled and this was not politics as it was a matter of decency. “The government cannot run like this. Those living in Sindh and KP are Pakistanis. If we raise our voices together, then there will be no obstacle,” he said.

Jamaat-e-Islami Naib Amir Liaquat Baloch said that people become blind and deaf when in power and all kinds of obstacles are put in place against the rivals. He warned that the federation is facing threats, and in the strongest terms. “I condemn the obstruction of freedom of expression. If fundamental rights are taken away, people take another path, and if the federation does not listen to the provinces, it poses even greater dangers,” he noted.

The JI leader said that he saw the unity of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal and the PDM, but he played an active role with everyone, talking about the sanctity of the Constitution, democracy and the people’s vote.

“We should not repeat the mistakes of the past, all democratic forces should agree on the national agenda and the Constitution should be upheld at all costs, and that the independence of the courts should be fought for.”

Awam Pakistan Party Secretary General Miftah Ismail said when the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz used to say respect the vote, they actually said respect the Constitution. But now they have no justification, no point. “What is the purpose of politics that your grandchildren and great-grandchildren become the prime minister. This government has not respected any law and Constitution,” he charged.

He claimed that there was a flood of Forms 47 in the assembly and amendments were passed by this assembly overnight. Miftah Ismail said that if political stagnation continues, then there will be instability in the country and society.

“They are not allowing even a hundred people to speak in a closed room, then they ask why they came to the streets. Pakistan is falling into decline. When we used to shout the slogan of respect for the vote, we stood together. You are afraid today and if you had come honestly, you would not have been afraid today,” he remarked.