Shahid Khaqan Abbasi hints at staying away from elections

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister and PML-N stalwart Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has hinted at to stay away from next elections in an interview with the ARY News.

“I don’t want to be a part of such system, perhaps I will work better to remain outside of it,” Abbasi said. “It is my personal assessment that currently politics won’t resolve national issues,” he said. “This reality seems to me, at least my contesting election won’t bring any solution,” PML-N leader said.

“I would not contest election if all stakeholders will not sit together,” he said. “What I will do by contesting election, in absence of a thinking to resolve the national problems,” he questioned.

On a question, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said that no party can be fragmented, such experiments in the past were resulted in failure, ” We must learn lesson from the past experiments,” he said. “You made the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), orchestrated People’s Party-Patriot and PML-Q, which saw failures. Those who made parties not being sighted now, neither those who were part of it. They are not being honoured, nor they had provided anything to the country,” Abbasi said.

“Istehkam Party claims to bring Istehkam (stability),” he said. “History teaches us, those who stand in difficulties are better placed,” former PM said.

“The politics has not become complicated, but it has become aimless,” Abbasi said on a question. “The politics to break this one and make that one bears no fruit; we did this politics for last 75 years. So-called accountability institutions were being used for some other political objectives. Buzdar had a corrupt government, if anyone had asked Buzdar over it,” Abbasi asked. “There are two options, either do a press conference or face the accountability. If Buzdar will be pardoned than everyone can be absolved,” he said.

“We did several such experiments in the part, now we must learn the lesson,” PML-N leader said. “We must learn the lesson from Year 2018 elections, what results these cheated elections given us,” Abbasi said. “If the elections will be cheated again, it won’t have a positive impact over the country,” he warned.

On a question about Nawaz Sharif’s return to Pakistan, PML-N leader said, “This is Javed Latif’s department, contact him”. “I also used to ask Javed Sahib about the date of Nawaz Sharif’s return,” he said. “This department was remained with Ayaz Sadiq for some time, but now Javed Latif fully holding the charge”, he added.