MURREE: Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif called for political tolerance Saturday, saying rivalry is a normal part of politics but differences should not escalate into enmity, as tensions with coalition partner Pakistan Peoples Party mount over the recently held Azad Jammu and Kashmir elections.
Speaking at a party meeting in Murree attended by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz said he had not expected the PPP to raise objections over the AJK elections, noting the party holds power in the region. He said the political environment that emerged during the polls was a matter of concern and attributed the situation to the failure of previous governments to fulfill their responsibilities.
The AJK elections, held in three phases, pitted the ruling coalition partners at the Centre against each other. The PML-N won a majority of seats, while the PPP alleged rigging. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the federal government’s “countdown has begun.”
“This is the first time that this environment has been created in Azad Kashmir, which is a cause of concern for all of us,” Nawaz said. “This has happened because the previous governments did not fulfil their duty.”
He urged political opponents to maintain tolerance and keep differences within the bounds of democratic disagreement, stressing that hostility had no place in politics. Nawaz said the PML-N had always treated its political opponents respectfully and reiterated that political differences should not turn into hostility.
People of AJK Looking Towards Punjab
The PML-N has already secured a simple majority after the first two phases of the AJK polls, winning 24 seats, with final results of the third phase yet to be announced. The PPP has clinched 10 seats in the first two phases.
Nawaz said the PML-N would form the government in AJK and vowed to fulfill promises the party made before the elections. He praised party leaders and workers over the victory and called for maximum funds to be provided to Azad Kashmir, saying welfare and development of its people should remain the government’s priority.
He said the people of AJK were looking toward Punjab, where he said development had been initiated under Shehbaz Sharif and subsequently advanced by Maryam Nawaz.
“The way we transformed Punjab, we will transform Azad Kashmir as well,” Nawaz said, warning that failure to deliver on the public mandate would lead to disappointment among voters.
Praising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his team, Nawaz said the prime minister is working to address the country’s challenges, adding that the situation was extremely difficult when he assumed office. “Today, the situation is improving day by day, and efforts are being made to put Pakistan on its own feet,” he said. He said the government is also working to free Pakistan from dependence on the International Monetary Fund and make the country economically self-reliant.
AJK Voters Rejected Parties Lacking Development Agenda
Speaking on the occasion, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said PM Shehbaz Sharif had shown “a big heart” by inviting the PPP to form its government in Gilgit-Baltistan.
She expressed regret that the PPP had leveled “false allegations” of rigging against the PML-N in the AJK elections, saying the PPP was not alleging rigging where it had won in Gilgit-Baltistan but was making such allegations in constituencies where it had lost.
Maryam said it appeared the people of AJK had listened carefully to election speeches and examined manifestos before casting their votes. “Those who had nothing to offer in AJK were rejected by the people,” she said.
She criticized the PPP’s development record, saying it could not promise roads because roads had remained broken for 17 years in areas where it had been in power. She said the PPP could not promise buses either because it had failed to provide buses to its own people, or those provided were also in poor condition. Maryam also said the PPP could not promise an improved sanitation system because piles of garbage were spread across the province under its administration.
She said PPP leaders appeared to have forgotten in the “heat of their speeches” that the government and administration in AJK were under their own control. “The president, prime minister, police, administration and staff in AJK were all their own,” Maryam said. She added that those leveling allegations of rigging against others should first apply “a little logic” before making such claims.
