JI leader says Islamabad insecure for journalists

TIMERGARA: Jamaat-e-Islami KP chief Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan on Sunday alleged that the government had turned the federal capital into a second Guantanamo Bay for journalists as anti-government newspersons felt insecure there.

Addressing a news conference at Ahyaul Uloom at Balmabat, the JI leader said the domestic, foreign, economic, defence and political policies of the government had totally failed while the inflation bomb was about to fall on the people in the upcoming budget.

Mushtaq Ahmad Khan said his party would resist the pro-US policies of the government. He demanded the government to make public the recent agreements made with the US. The JI provincial deputy general secretary Maulana Hanifullah, district chief Aizaz ul Mulk Afkari, Upper Dir amir advocate Hanifullah, Bajaur amir Sardar Khan and others were also present on the occasion.

Mushtaq Ahmad alleged the government failure was evident from the figures released by the Federal Bureau of Statistics. National debt is rising and circular debt is getting out of control while the people have been hit hard by inflation in the form of budget,” he said.

The JI senator said his party would resist the anti-people budget prepared on the basis of foreign proposals. He said the present government was publicly opposing the hand-over of its airbases but the past track record showed that it would surrender to the US demand.

The JI leader announced that his party would strongly oppose any step to give air bases to the US. He voiced aversion to the alleged move to gag the media in the name of regulating it, saying the government had imposed restrictions on journalists.

Criticizing the National Accountability Bureau, he alleged the government was using it for political engineering. The JI leader said the government should form a jirga to resolve the problems of the tribal people. Replying to a question, he said JI would extend support if the opposition wanted to get rid of the government by resigning from the Parliament.