Zardari demands immediate arrest of Sharif's family

LAHORE: Pakistan People Party co chairman Asif Ali Zardari has demanded the immediate arrest of the family of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif saying there were serious corruption cases against them.

In a statement on Friday, the former president said the accountability proceedings against the Sharif family are unfair as they should be subjugated to the same procedure as the PPP whose members were first arrested, imprisoned and then proceedings were initiated against them.

“Nawaz Sharif and his family are having VIP accountability. They should go through the same process through which we went through,” he said. “They have serious cases against them. They should be immediately arrested.”

Zardari said the Sharif’s were being escorted to the accountability courts, which the PPP will not accept as long they are not treated equally in a similar way.

Referring to retired Captain Safdar, he said that a member of the Sharif family was released on bail within one day after being arrested, while their party member received bail after two-and-half years. He said their members are first arrested, then sent behind bars, and they are framed in different cases.

“The godfather sends us secret messages for reconciliation in London, but we have rejected them,” he said about his links with the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N).

He said they Nawaz Sharif does not remember the accountability of the 1990s when political cases were framed upon the PPP, while they have undergone the accountability of Saif-ur-Rehman.

He said people should about the Sicilian mafia, which was not just in the power game, but was involved in several other shady activities. “I am afraid Nawaz Sharif and his family may not be involved in similar activities,” he said.

He said Nawaz and Shahbaz Sharif were misleading the public through their contradictory statements, and share a lot of information about each other, but should realise that the people want to  free themselves.

He deplored that provision of security to Nawaz Sharif in Lahore despite having no public office, as three thousand policeman were deployed and forty official vehicles were provided to him.