After ECP’s report, Imran ineligible to stay as PM: Shehbaz

ISLAMABAD: Opposition leader in National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif Friday said Prime Minister Imran Khan was no more Sadiq and Ameen as the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) recent report proved that he was a liar and a thief.

He said Imran Khan should quit the Prime Minister’s office immediately as he could not continue as the premier constitutionally. He demanded legal action andcourt proceedings against him on daily basis, as was done in the case of Nawaz Sharif.

Shehbaz said the report revealed that the PTI hid millions of rupees worth of funds. "A person who hides facts, steals, and lies, cannot hold constitutional, government or political offices," the PMLN president said in a statement shared by the party on Twitter.

The PMLN president also said that the Constitution, law and ethics also demand that Imran Khan should quit immediately. He said that there was law and constitutional vacuum as currently the country was without a prime minister and Leader of the House in the National Assembly. "After the ECP scrutiny report, any decision that is made cannot be considered constitutional or legal," Shehbaz claimed. He said he would also talk to the opposition parties regarding constitutional crisis following the ECP report. "All parties and workers who have faith in the Constitution and the law will have to play their role in bringing Pakistan out of this constitutional vacuum," he said.

Shehbaz also questioned if the law could apply to a popular leader like Nawaz Sharif, why not Imran Niazi? "If a JIT on Panama Papers can be formed against Nawaz Sharif, and can be overseen by the honourable judges of the Supreme Court, then why can this not be done for Imran Niazi?" he asked.

The opposition leader also demanded a review of the deal with the International Monetary Fund and the supplementary finance bill, termed by the Opposition a mini-budget. Replying to Shehbaz Sharif criticism and demand for Prime Minister Imran Khan’s resignation, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Political Communication Dr Shahbaz Gill said Chhotay Mian [Younger Mian] was just day-dreaming about getting power again. He said accountability of the Sharif brothers would continue and they would have to return the looted money to the nation.