Establishment wanted assemblies to complete tenure: CM Pervaiz Elahi

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi has termed the country’s Establishment ‘more sensible’ than politicians, saying that it wants the assemblies to complete their tenure, ARY News reported on Sunday.

Speaking on ARY News programme ‘The Reporters’, the Punjab CM revealed that the country’s Establishment was against the dissolution of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) assemblies and wanted Houses to complete their tenure.

During the interview, CM Pervaiz Elahi lambasted Pakistan Thereek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan for talking against former chief of army staff (COAS) Gen (retd) Qamar Javed Bajwa, reminding him of ex-army chief’s ‘favours’ upon the party.

The provincial chief executive said the PTI should remember Gen Bajwa’s favours upon the party, adding that he was not against Khan’s party but its members should avoid talking about their ‘benefactor’.

“Bajwa elevated the party’s stature from nothing and supported the government on many international matters such as negotiating procurement of funds from Pakistan’s Arab allies or the International Monetary Fund,” CM Pervaiz Elahi added.

The Punjab chief minister warned that he and his party will be the first ones to defend General (retd) Qamar Bajwa if anything further is said against the former army chief.

“I told Imran Khan that Gen Bajwa is ours, yours and PTI’s benefactor so fear God and don’t speak against him,” he said, adding that how can be so ‘ungrateful’ despite of many favours.

“The injustice that Imran Khan did is that making us sit beside him, he criticised Bajwa sahab in front of me,” he said while referring to the former premier’s speech, wherein he announced to dissolve the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab assemblies.

Elahi said he had “felt very bad” about the entire situation but could not raise the issue since there were too many stakeholders present in the room. “We will not tolerate this. Bajwa is our benefactor and we don’t hear anything against them,” he added.

Dissolution of assemblies

Speaking of the dissolution of assemblies, CM Pervaiz Elahi said his party had voiced its support to Imran Khan’s decision. “We owed the Punjab government to Imran Khan,” he said, reiterating that he and his party would always support the PTI chief.

He claimed that the current political crisis will not go far to dissolution of assemblies. The Punjab CM noted that he left no stone unturned in past four months to provide relief to the people.

“If I had a chance, I would have completed the term till August,” he said, adding but this mandate belongs to Imran Khan, and he would follow his decision.

Criticism of Gen Faiz

Pervaiz Elahi also levelled allegations against former director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lieutenant General (retd) Faiz Hameed, saying that “he committed injustice with us every now and then to get us arrested.”

He claimed that Gen Faiz was “strongly against” him, alleging that the ex-ISI chief had called up the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chairman at the time and told him to “arrest me and Moonis” around the time of Bajwa’s extension.

Elahi added that he had then called Gen Bajwa who “straightened Faiz out”. “Gen Faiz was not resisting and then he said that ‘there were orders from above of Imran Khan’,” he added.