Lahore: Imran Khan, former prime minister and the head of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), stated that having a positive relationship with Afghanistan “is inevitable for Pakistan” regardless of the current administration in the neighboring nation. “Whatever government in Afghanistan is, Pakistan must have a good relationship with them,” he emphasized, adding that as Pakistan’s prime minister, he did his best to maintain good relations with the Ashraf Ghani-led administration in order to secure Kabul’s cooperation in combating terrorism.
When asked about the incumbent government’s failure to enlist Afghanistan’s help in combating the country’s rising terrorism, Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari responded that it was troubling that he had spent almost all of his time outside of Pakistan but hadn’t made a single trip to Afghanistan. He added that Pakistan “is not in a position to have another war on terror.” The new military leadership, according to Imran, has recognized that the “experiment of regime change has failed.” In an interview with the US broadcaster Voice of America, he stated, “I’m sure amongst the new military leadership there is a realization that this experiment of regime change has gone wrong.”
The PTI leader, who was removed from office by a vote of no-confidence in April of last year, emphasized that elected governments must have power and responsibility, and that a nation’s “system fails if it is not the case.” Khan continued, “The fundamental tenet of the balance [of power] is that the elected government, which the people have mandated through their vote, has the responsibility, must also have the authority. According to him, authority and responsibility cannot be separated, and a system cannot function if “both things are vested in the same individual.” No management system is effective if the prime minister is responsible but the army chief has the authority.
The PTI leader said that all of the military’s policies in Pakistan are decided by one person in response to a query about his relationship with the military in his capacity as prime minister. “In Pakistan, the term “military” refers to the army chief. Therefore, one man’s personality determines the military’s entire strategy for dealing with the civilian government. The deposed prime minister continued by saying that having the “organized strength of the Pakistan Army to help us” was a benefit of his relationship with General Qamar Javed Bajwa, the then-army chief. He claimed that Pakistan’s effective response to COVID-19 was evidence of the influence of this relationship.
Imran Khan claimed that the “problem” started when Gen. Bajwa “favoured some of the biggest crooks in this country.” He asserted that the former army chief wanted his government to ignore the “biggest problem” and collaborate with the corrupt officials, “giving them immunity from their corruption cases,” in order to cover up their corruption. Khan added that Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, and the former COAS had a close relationship and “conspired” to bring about the “regime change.” The deposed premier claims that Pakistan is experiencing the worst political and economic crisis in its history and that the economy has collapsed.
The PTI leader expressed his views on his demand for general elections and claimed that holding “free and fair elections is not possible anymore” because the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had lost its reputation as an impartial electoral body. “In Sindh, there was a local government election that was rejected by all the political parties.”
