Prime Minister Imran Khan Wednesday said he would give a big surprise to the opposition and lay his cards on the table a day before the National Assembly votes on the no-confidence motion against him.
Talking to reporters in Islamabad, he said the opposition had revealed all of their cards, but the no-confidence motion against him would not be successful. “I will not resign under any circumstances. I will play till the last ball […] and I will surprise them a day before as they are still under pressure,” the prime minister said, without revealing further details.
NA Speaker Asad Qaiser has summoned the National Assembly session on March 25 (tomorrow).
“My trump card is that I have not laid any of my cards yet,” the prime minister said confidently, as he vowed to foil the no-trust motion.
Imran said he would not compromise on corruption under any circumstances, as he slammed the PML-N and PPP for resorting to the politics of “corruption”. “No one should be under the false impression that I will sit at home. I will not resign, and why should I? Should I resign due to the pressure from thieves?” he stressed, says a news report.
Imran predicted that the opposition’s politics would come to an end after the no-confidence motion foils. On meeting the Leader of the Opposition Shahbaz Sharif, he said: “I cannot shake hands with a person who is extremely corrupt.” The prime minister said he would never hold a consultative meeting with Shahbaz, as he stressed that the Sharif brothers and Asif Ali Zardari were “corruption brands” of Pakistan. “They have no ideology,” he said and asked: “Where does it happen that politicians take money to dismiss a sitting government?” Imran said only a person with no vision would follow the leadership of PPP and PML-N. He claimed that the 11 opposition parties had come on the same page against him, but they could not match his popularity.
The prime minister also warned the opposition that he would not sit silent if he stepped down from the office – a threat he has repeated time and again. “I will not compromise on my principles even if my government is ousted […] I cannot betray the people and God.”
Moving on, Imran said it was wrong to consistently attack and criticise the army, as a powerful military was crucial for Pakistan. “Had the army not been here, the country would have split into three parts. “The army should not be criticised for politicking,” he said. The prime minister also said his statement on neutrality was taken in the “wrong context”.
“I said in the context of preventing evil and asking people to do good.” Imran said he had good relations with the military to date. He said any MNA or politician who had left the PTI would return and that the people had left his party only for “money”.
Imran said in recent days, the PTI’s popularity had witnessed an increase. “People are with me […] as many as 60-65% respectable people are standing by my side.”
The prime minister said he foresaw a 90% increase in the PTI’s support base after the ruling party’s rally on March 27 in Islamabad. Calling Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl chief Fazlur Rehman a “twelfth player of the politics”, he said the time for his exclusion from the team was nearing. He said the objective of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan People’s Party’s politics was just to conceal their own theft.
To a question, the prime minister confirmed to have met with former interior minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, as he had 40-year-old association with him.
Speaking about his ‘animals are neutral’ remarks, the premier said his remarks were taken out of context. He added that he alluded to neutrality in the context of good and evil.
Meanwhile, speaking to the media, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said the prime minister had “a lot of cards” to defeat the no-confidence motion. Rashid said the session of the National Assembly will be prorogued on the first day on account of death of a lawmaker.
The minister said the vote on the no-confidence motion could be held between March 30 and April 1. He added that the March 27 rally of the PTI will prove how many people stand with the premier. The prime minister hoped that the allies will stand with the PTI government.
