Frustrated opposition pursuing politics of anarchy: Shah Mehmood Qureshi

MULTAN: Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said the opposition is a bunch of frustrated and rejected politicians, who are pursuing the politics of anarchy.

Addressing a meeting in his constituency NA-156 union councils 43, 47 and 65 on Saturday, he said repeated attempts to overthrow the government have failed since 2018. Now, if the opposition wants to play the game of no-confidence, they should go ahead with their plans. He said: “The opposition doesn’t have enough votes, and that is why they are indulging in negative politics.”

Qureshi said the opposition should accept this reality that people had rejected them in the 2018 elections. He said that on the basis of the government performance, he was confident that the year 2023 would also be the year of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). The opposition would be disappointed in 2023 also, he added.

He said the country was moving in the right direction. The government was striving for development and prosperity of the country with the right intention, sincerity and honesty. The government would steer the country out of crisis with the help of masses, he added. The foreign minister said both the PPP and the PMLN enjoyed power for 40 years. Both fooled people by taking turns in government and friendly opposition. Qureshi said people had turned away from both the parties now. People have got an honest and patriotic leadership in the form of Imran Khan, he said adding that the prime minister is the centre of people's hopes now. People know that PM Imran Khan has the ability to steer the country out of crises.

Qureshi said the PTI government was fighting against plunderers since day one of its formation. PM Imran Khan is firm that he would not give an NRO [deal] to any thief or looter. The war against corruption and looting would continue under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan, he added.

The PTI central leader said the government wanted to make the country economically stable. He said government’s prime focus was on geo-economic priorities. Keeping in view their geographical position, they wanted to make Pakistan a regional economic hub for which the concept of economic diplomacy had been introduced. He said the economic diplomacy was not limited to imports and exports, but it was a wider concept. The foreign minister said Pakistan’s diplomats would have to take responsibility for economic diplomacy. Only then they would succeed in making Pakistan a strong economic hub, he added.

The minister admitted that inflation was a big challenge for the government. However, he added, price-hike was not just a problem in Pakistan but a global issue. Due to coronavirus pandemic, transportation of goods all-over the world had been hindered. It increased prices of commodities all across globe, he added.

The foreign minister said when oil becomes more expensive, the prices of daily necessities including gas, electricity and transport also go up. But, he added, the government was taking steps for reducing burden on people and bringing inflation under control. The positive results of their efforts would be produced soon, he added.