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Former senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar. Courtesy:
ISLAMABAD:
Leaders of the opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) criticized the government’s national security strategy, foreign policy stance and economic management.
The opposition alliance warned that rising poverty, governance failures and flawed diplomatic decisions were pushing the country towards irreversible damage.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, central leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, along with PTI’s Taimur Khan Jhagra and other representatives of the alliance, expressed concern over the recent major terror incidents in Islamabad and Balochistan.
Khokhar said the State must move forward “with clarity” in the fight against terrorism and emphasized that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) were terrorist organizations that needed to be dealt with strictly.
However, he argued that the government appeared to be failing in its response.
Khokhar also raised the alarm about regional developments, stating that “war clouds were hanging over a neighboring country” and alleging that the United States had deployed two naval fleets toward Iran.
He said the scale of the military move was the largest since 2003, before the attack on Iraq, and questioned why a serious debate was not taking place in Pakistan about the possible implications of regime change efforts in Iran for the country.
Criticizing Pakistan’s participation in US President Donald Trump’s Peace Board, Khokhar referred to a report by The Guardian, which claimed that the meeting was attended by representatives of dictators and monarchies, while countries like China and Britain stayed away.
He said that Pakistan had attended without trusting anyone and alleged that soon after the participation, news of a deal related to the Roosevelt Hotel emerged. He questioned on what basis the Roosevelt Hotel was handed over and demanded that the government reveal the terms and conditions of that agreement.
On internal governance, Khokhar said the current system had not served the people, citing the deterioration of law and order. He warned that if the current trajectory continued, it would shake the country’s foundations and called for transparent elections.
He also demanded the release of political prisoners, provision of best medical facilities to PTI founder Imran Khan, and accountability of a “Form 47 government” that was not held accountable.
On the economy, Taimur Khan Jhagra rejected the government’s claims of recovery, saying that despite controlled media narratives portraying an improvement, official data shows the opposite, even after four years.
Referring to the recently released National Poverty Report issued by Federal Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Jhagra said 29 per cent of Pakistan’s population was now living below the poverty line, up from 22 per cent in 2018.
He regretted that in the last 11 years poverty had increased significantly and inequality between rich and poor had widened to its highest level since 1998.
Jhagra said poverty had increased by 41 percent in Punjab, 33 percent in Sindh, 23 percent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 12 percent in Balochistan, noting that two traditionally poorer provinces had fared better than richer ones.
He said overall household income had declined by 10 percent since 2015, adding that under the official poverty line, a person earning more than Rs 282 a day was not considered poor.
“What can you buy with 282 rupees?” he asked, estimating that approximately 130 million Pakistanis lived below the poverty line. He added that poverty levels in Bangladesh and India were half those of Pakistan.
He further alleged that foreign direct investment had declined by 42 percent, arguing that the government lacked a coherent economic model and was instead shifting focus between minerals, cryptocurrencies and corporate agriculture to no avail.
He also cited the government’s unemployment report, stating that it reflected the highest unemployment rate in 21 years.
Jhagra criticized the Punjab government’s purchase of a plane worth Rs 10 billion, comparing it to planes owned by figures like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos or heads of wealthy states, and said it could not realistically be intended for Air Punjab’s commercial operations.
He argued that while Pakistan International Airlines had been sold for Rs 10 billion, no justification had been provided for the purchase of the aircraft at a time when people were struggling to meet basic needs.
He also alleged that special privileges had been granted to the inspector general and chief secretary of Punjab, including permission to retain 1,800 cc, 2,800 cc and 4,500 cc vehicles, with monthly petrol charges reaching Rs 700,000.
He questioned whether Pakistan had one of the highest GDP per capita in the world to justify such benefits.
The former provincial finance minister also cited an Al Jazeera report that alleged the CCD had carried out 900 extrajudicial killings and said Rp40 billion had been spent on a digital firewall project that was later shut down.
He noted that Palestine had no representation on the Peace Board and warned that if a pro-Israel government emerged in Iran, Israel’s strategic presence could extend closer to Pakistan’s borders.
TTAP spokesperson Akhunzada Hussain Yousafzai also expressed concern over the health of PTI founder Imran Khan, stating that a second injection was scheduled for February 24 or 25.
He demanded that the jailed leader be shifted to Shifa International Hospital for treatment in the presence of his family and Dr Asim.
Yousafzai further condemned the recent tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan and urged that disputes with neighboring countries be resolved through dialogue.
