BAGH: Minister for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Senator Pervaiz Rashid said on Wednesday that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had pushed the country into darkness during its five-year tenure in Centre and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).
The PPP had even failed to establish connectivity among different cities of AJK, which showed its bad governance, he claimed while talking to newsmen after attending a reception hosted in his honour. The minister said PML-N government was working to steer the country out of crises like terrorism, energy and poor economy, which was even being acknowledged by international community and media. The reception, hosted by prominent journalist Mushtaq Minhas who recently joined the PML-N AJK, was also attended by Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Barjees Tahir and Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Political Affairs Dr Asif Kirmani.
Pervaiz Rashid said the national economy was improving due to “effective policies” of the PML-N government as all economic indicators were moving in right direction. He expressed the confidence that the AJK people would elect the PML-N candidates in the upcoming general elections for the prosperity of the valley. He said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was committed to the development of AJK, and the PML-N, if it is elected, would make it self-reliant and economically stable so that it could carry out mega projects on its own. The PML-N, he said, would field its candidates in all constituencies of AJK Legislative Assembly.
However, the option of forming an alliance with other parties was also under consideration, he said and hoped that the PML-N would emerge as a majority party. Pervaiz Rashid said Mushtaq Minhas was a credible journalist and would also prove himself as a good politician. He (Minhas) would give a guideline to the party in AJK, he added. Commenting on the Kashmir issue, the minister said India would have to resolve the dispute in accordance with the United Nations resolutions to avoid isolation in the world and for durable peace in the region.
The international community also wanted settlement of the Kashmir issue for peace in the region and, therefore India would not be able to linger on it further. Minister for Kashmir Affairs Chaudhry Barjees Tahir strongly criticised the PPP government in AJK for its “bad governance and corruption”. He said AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Majeed had done nothing except recruiting party workers in the government departments and looting public money, he alleged. He blamed the AJK government for inducting thousands of employees in various government departments including universities by taking bribe. He said the Kashmir Liberation Cell was meant for liberation movement but it was used for political gains.
He alleged that hundreds of PPP workers were appointed in the Cell in grade 17 to 20 and that former PPP government in Centre transferred Rs 300 billion meant for reconstruction work in the earthquake-affected areas to Benazir Income Support Programme.
