Pakistan: Zardari warns govt against political victimisation

Former president and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has warned the government against the alleged victimisation of PPP members.

In a statement on Saturday, Mr Zardari said he was “shocked” that while the PPP was seeking to protect the democratic system through political reconciliation, the government was “chasing opponents and thereby undermining the unity of political forces”.

He “deplored” the alleged victimisation of former premiers Yousuf Raza Gilani and Raja Pervez Ashraf and former commerce minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim.

The PPP co-chairman said that policy decisions about rental power plants or subsidies in importing commodities were taken collectively and transparently by the cabinet in the light of objective realities and singling out the prime minister was “patently wrong and smacks of political victimisation”.

He said it was strange that in references only public representatives had been accused of wrongdoing, because not a single sponsor of the power projects had been indicted.

On the other hand, Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid said the government had nothing to do with the decisions of courts or investigating agencies and that the PPP could move higher courts if it considered such decisions as “witch-hunting or political victimisation”. Talking to Dawn, he said only a few days ago when an accountability court acquitted Mr Zardari in the polo ground reference, his counsel praised courts and the National Accountability Bureau.

Mr Rashid said the PPP should know that judiciary was independent and that doors of high courts and the Supreme Court were open for them.