PTI, PAT serious about protests; PPP to decide in September: Sheikh Rashid

He was speaking to ARY News program ‘Off the Record’ where he said that the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) were serious about taking to the streets to demand accountability for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

However, he said that the seriousness of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will be known in September. He revealed that Opposition leader Khursheed Shah had hinted they were preparing for street protests and will make a final decision soon.

He said Bilawal Bhutto would have come out in the political arena if he wants to follow in the footsteps of his mother Benazir Bhutto and illustrious grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, or else the party will be wiped out in Punjab.

Sheikh Rashid said that the ToR committee has lost its potency and was now completely worthless. He said that Nawaz Sharif will never start accountability from himself, and therefore such issues will now only be decided on the streets, and that the upcoming three months are crucial for the politics of Pakistan.

Rashid admitted that the government was being strengthened by a weak and friendly opposition, as several parties such as Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) of Maulana Fazlur Rehman and the Awami National Party (ANP) were siding with the government. He said that reports of a clash with Khursheed Shah were baseless and completely unfounded.

He said that the likely protests next month will test the loyalty of the Jamaat-e-Islami and he had met Siraj-ul-Haq several times over the issue, while Mahmood Achakzai was the biggest snitch of Nawaz Sharif, let alone an agent of foreign agencies.

He said that he was yet to ascertain the intentions of Muthaida Quami Movement (MQM) as their coordination in Karachi was much different than the one in London.