PML-N leader Zubair on Saturday asked PTI Chairman Imran Khan to “prove” he is sadiq (honest) and ameen (trustworthy), two characteristics which are prerequisites for any public office holder.
Addressing a press conference, he said Imran Khan, the man who lectured honesty and quote examples of Hazrat Umar (RA) to the nation, was not ready to present himself for accountability. He said Imran Khan will have to answer queries on his foreign funding case. He said the story of The Financial Times was a small part of foreign funding. Imran would be repeatedly inquired about foreign funding. The foreign funding case has been pending in the Election Commission for 8 years – so that Imran Khan and PTI can answer it. This was a simple case, money has come from outside and according to the national law, it was necessary to share the sources of the received amount.
Zubair said that the PTI is “making excuses” to stop the verdict in the case, which was reserved by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in June. “Imran Khan should now give proof of him being sadiq and ameen,” he said, challenging him to file a defamation case against the international publication in the courts of London.
Regarding cases registered against PML-N leaders, he said that “fake cases” were filed against party supremo Nawaz Sharif, however, he showed all of his asset details. “We [PML-N leaders] have appeared in the courts several times, however, Imran Khan never appeared before the courts,” he said, asking why the PTI chairman is shying away from being held accountable. Zubair was talking about an expose by the Financial Times that blew the lid off Pakistani tycoon Arif Naqvi’s involvement in the party’s finances and how a significant portion of its funding in 2013 was of foreign origin. According to the report, “Naqvi transferred three instalments directly to the PTI in 2013 adding up to a total of $2.12m”. At the centre of the saga is Wootton Cricket Ltd, a Cayman Islands-incorporated company owned by Naqvi, and the money from charity fundraisers, such as the “Wootton T20 Cup”, to bankroll PTI.
Naqvi, the founder of the Dubai-based Abraaj Group, one of the largest private equity firms operating in emerging markets back when the PTI was campaigning for the 2013 elections, hosted the cricket tournament at his country estate in the Oxfordshire village of Wootton from 2010 to 2012, FT said. The guests were asked to pay between £2,000 and £2,500 each to attend, according to the UK publication. Quoting, Naqvi, it added that that the money went to unspecified “philanthropic causes”.
