Oppression will end when the nation rejects submission, says PTI’s Salman Raja

KARACHI:

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Central Secretary General Salman Akram Raja said that “the day the nation decides that it will no longer accept a life of subjugation, this oppression will automatically end.”

He made the remarks while addressing a press conference at the Karachi Press Club along with former Sindh Governor Mohammad Zubair, Economic Spokesman of Tehreek Tahaffuz-e-Aain Pakistan, and other party leaders, where they expressed deep concern over the deteriorating economic and political situation of the country.

Mohammad Zubair said the government’s claims of economic stability were contradicted by its own official reports, which show a sharp decline in living standards and a rapid rise in poverty.

He said according to government surveys, 80 percent of citizens have experienced a decline in their quality of life, while a similar proportion have reduced spending on food due to inflation. He added that the urban middle class has been hardest hit, with 23 percent of the urban population witnessing a decline in income and living standards.

Questioning the government’s performance, Zubair said, “When people’s lives have gone downhill over the last four years, the question must be asked – what exactly has the government achieved?”

He criticized the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC), stating that it had failed to attract investment and that overall investment had fallen by 50 percent, calling it proof of the institution’s failure.

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Zubair further revealed that 30 million people had fallen below the poverty line in the past three years. He said foreign investment from the US and the Middle East was absent due to the absence of the rule of law, adding that even Pakistani investors now demanded the right to international arbitration before investing.

Holding Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif primarily responsible for the economic slowdown, Zubair recalled that the prime minister had promised to fix the economy within six months – a promise he said had not been fulfilled.

He also highlighted the decline in foreign exchange reserves, noting that reserves stood at over $17 billion at the time of the no-confidence motion but had fallen to $2.9 billion by January 2023. He said the threat of a June 2023 default emerged after the IMF program was damaged.

On corruption, Zubair demanded clarification on NAB’s demand to recover Rs5.300 billion, asking from whom the money was recovered and who had been punished. He pointed to major scandals including the Rs 300 billion wheat scandal, the Rs 300 billion sugar scandal, and admitted losses of Rs 300 billion annually through oil smuggling, as acknowledged by the oil minister.

Regarding political restrictions, Salman Akram Raja said that despite issuing an NOC for a public demonstration, the police cordoned off the area, made arrests and harassed stage and sound system providers. “Despite all this, the rally will continue,” he asserted.

He said PTI supports the privatization of PIA in principle, but warned that serious concerns exist regarding transparency and workers’ rights and that exploitation in the name of privatization would not be tolerated.

Raja further stated that those responsible for destroying state institutions and those involved in corruption must be held accountable. He lamented that the courts and parliament had become mere facades and that the country had effectively become “a prison.”

He said that Article 15 of the constitution, which guarantees free movement of all citizens, was violated and stressed that the fight for public rights and freedoms had become inevitable.

“The day the nation decides that it will no longer accept a life of subjugation,” he concluded, “this oppression will end of itself.”