Latest news with #AwaamPakistanParty
Express Tribune
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Economic revival tied to political stability: Abbasi
Awaam Pakistan Party (APP) Chairman Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has said that Pakistan cannot move forward unless the ongoing political instability ends, adding that there is a need for genuine political leadership and stronger democratic processes. Speaking to the media during his visit to Quetta on Thursday, Abbasi voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating law and order situation in Balochistan. "For the past 10 to 15 years, Balochistan has faced continuous crises. Today, its highways are unsafe, its economy is suffering, and its youth are losing hope," he remarked. "We must reflect on why such conditions persist in Balochistan." He criticized Islamabad for failing to address the basic grievances of the people of Balochistan and urged the federal government to take effective and revolutionary measures to redress the long-standing concerns of the province's population. "The issues of the country will not be resolved until political unrest ends and the rule of law is established. We must run the country and divide its resources within the framework of the Constitution," he said.
Express Tribune
25-04-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
No investment amid chaos, warns Abbasi
Awaam Pakistan Party (APP) chief Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said on Thursday that no country could attract investment amid political chaos and in the absence of the rule of law, emphasising that no improvement should be expected until the country was governed under the Constitution. Speaking at the 'Meet the Press' programme at the Karachi Press Club (KPC), Abbasi condemned India's actions after Pahalgam attack, particularly the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty. "No one could be allowed to stop water. We have to become one nation and confront the Indian aggression," he said. The former prime minister dilated on several issues facing the country – from canals controversy to the law and order situation – and criticised the federal government's performance. He also spoke about the infrastructure and services delivery issues in Karachi. "Karachi is the jugular vein of Pakistan, if this does not work, then Pakistan will not work," Abbasi, who served as the prime minister for year in 2017-18, told the reporters. "The conditions that will be in Karachi, will be the same in the whole of Pakistan." He said that 70 of the population of Karachi did not have access to tap water. "Where in the world water is supplied through tankers. It means that the required amount of water is available but the people are deprived of tap-water facility," he said. On the canals issue, he said that the issued should have been raised in the Senate and the National Assembly. "Sindh is in protest today, which will impact the entire country." On Balochistan, he said that the solution to its problem would be found only through talks and listening to its people's concerns. Abbasi said that everywhere in the world laws were enacted for media freedom, therefore, "today is not the time to restrict the media" by resorting to legislation. "Today, new provinces are needed. Reforms are needed, but unfortunately, reforms were not being discussed.
Express Tribune
17-03-2025
- Politics
- Express Tribune
Abbasi blames injustices for terror
Former prime minister and Awaam Pakistan Party (APP) chief Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has blamed the resurgence of terrorism on systemic injustices, the disregard for public opinion and the bulldozing of laws. He further lamented that the people's mandate in the general elections was trampled upon to install the current rulers. Speaking to journalists and public delegations during his visit to Kallar Syedan on Monday, Abbasi stated that elections were manipulated to sideline those genuinely elected by the people, while those rejected by the electorate were placed in power. "In our country, the decisions of the people are thrown into the dustbin. This approach is neither democratic nor ethical," he lamented. Abbasi also slammed the "forces" that once brought PTI founding chairman Imran Khan to power, questioning why, out of 250 million Pakistanis, they deemed Asif Zardari and Shehbaz Sharif the best alternatives after Imran. He stressed that Pakistan's progress depended solely on upholding the Constitution and the rule of law. Referring to his past association with the PML-N, Abbasi stated, "As long as the party stood by its 'Respect the Vote' slogan, I was with them. But when they shifted to 'Respect Power,' I distanced myself". Expressing concern over the worsening security situation, Abbasi said, "Our conflict was in the east, but we are now collecting bodies from the west". He lamented the enforced disappearances of young men, questioning where their families should turn for justice. "If people's children go missing, and no one even tells them where they are, where should they seek justice? Who should they knock on for help? There is darkness all around," he added. Criticising the current state of politics, Abbasi said that during his tenure as prime minister, he neither interfered in others' affairs nor allowed anyone to meddle in his authority. "Today, however, politicians are engaged in a race to prove who is the most obedient," he added.
Arab News
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Leader of Pakistan opposition movement says will meet Imran Khan if he has learnt from past mistakes
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said this week he was willing to meet jailed ex-premier Imran Khan to cool political instability in Pakistan provided that he had reflected on the mistakes of his four years in power and was willing to change. Khan's opponents including Abbasi, chairman of the newly formed Awaam Pakistan Party (APP), say he failed during his years in power from 2018-2022 to revive an economy battered by COVID-19 or fulfil promises to make Pakistan a corruption-free, prosperous nation respected on the world stage. They also say Khan victimized his political opponents by jailing them and launching court cases against them while in power. Khan denies the allegations. Khan has been in jail since August 2023 and faces a slew of charges from corruption to treason that he says are politically motivated. Even from behind bars, he arguably remains the nation's most popular politician, according to most polls. Speaking to Arab News, Abbasi, a main leader in a joint opposition movement against the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, said he was willing to meet with the jailed Khan to resolve the country's long political stalemate. 'My first dialogue with him would be about whether he has reflected in jail, whether he has contemplated what he did in his four years [in office], and if he's willing to change,' Abbasi said. 'If he's not willing to change, if he thinks he can operate the same way he did for four years, run government and parliament and the country the same way, then I don't see much hope.' 'NATIONAL DIAGLOGUE' Khan, a cricketer-turned-politician, surged to power in 2018 with what is widely believed to be the support of the military, which maintains it is neutral in politics. He was ousted from power in a parliamentary vote of no confidence in 2022, which plunged the country into prolonged political uncertainty, with his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerging as a thorn in the side of the federal government and the military and keeping the country's politics on razor's edge by holding regular protests and speaking about the party's alleged persecution and rights abuses at international platforms. Khan, since his ouster, has faced dozens of legal cases, including charges of corruption, revealing state secrets and inciting mutiny during anti-government protests his party is accused of leading on May 9, 2023. The cases and a string of court convictions ruled the 71-year-old out of the Feb. 8 general elections last year and the PTI was also barred by the election commission from contesting as a party on the basis of a technicality, forcing members to run as independents. Though the PTI-linked independents won the greatest number of seats, they did not have the majority to form a government, which was put together as a coalition administration led by Shehbaz Sharif as prime minister. Sharif is the younger brother of three-time prime minister Nawaz Sharif and led the successful bid by the opposition in parliament to topple Khan in the 2022 no-confidence vote. The PTI and other opposition parties have alleged rigging in the Feb. 8 general elections, which were marred by nationwide Internet shutdowns and delayed results, and the PTI has since held multiple protests, including some that have turned violent, calling for fresh elections and demanding Khan's release from prison. Talks between the PTI and the government to resolve the political stalemate began in December but broke down earlier this year. Since then, the PTI has formed a joint front against the federal government along with other opposition parties, and former prime minister Abbasi has emerged as a main leader of that movement, called the Tehreek-e-Tahaffuz-e-Ayeen-e-Pakistan, or the Movement for the Protection of the Constitution of Pakistan. 'In our last opposition meeting, we gave the solution, the solution was new elections but before that, there is a need for a national dialogue with the national leadership,' Abbasi said, commenting on a grand moot of the opposition alliance last week. 'I advocated [for] the military to sit on that table, the judiciary to sit on that table.' The purpose of the national dialogue, which could also include business leaders and top media house bosses, Abbasi said, was to develop a consensus on an 'action plan.' 'And then implement it jointly. This is an extraordinary situation for Pakistan, it needs an extraordinary solution.' Pakistan, a country of over 240 million people, narrowly avoided default in 2023 and has since been treading a tricky path to economic recovery, buttressed by a $7 billion IMF bailout approved last year and tied to tough reforms. 'Pakistan needs massive, massive reforms in every segment and then [stakeholders] need to work together to implement that,' the ex-premier said. 'That is the need of the hour.'
