Malik for consensus on internal security, foreign policy
ISLAMABAD:
Senate Standing Committee on Interior Chairman Senator Rehman Malik proposed
consensus legislation on the issues of internal security, foreign policy,
economy, water management, education and health so that the policies on these
could continue despite the change in the governments.
“Once consensus
legislation on these issues is made then no successive government could change
the continuation of the policies on internal security, foreign policy, economy,
water management, education and health,” he said in an interview to The
News/Jang on Tuesday.
Malik said, “The
nation’s future lies in six points — internal security, foreign policy,
economy, water management, education and health — and to remove the hurdles in
the way of prosperity of the country and difficulties. We should move ahead
with consensus on the national issues to live with the honour in the world so
that we should not be stand in the last line at the international airports due to
green passport.”
The PPP leader
said the country had sustained losses due to carrying out of the ad hoc polices
in the past but “now should have move towards long-term planning and policies
to put the country on the path of development and prosperity”.
He said the
country external debt stood at $200 billion, international debt at Rs 9
trillion, other debt in the shape of issuance of different bonds and more than
Rs 1 trillion circular debt just because of the mistakes of the previous
governments. “The mistakes of the previous government are still haunting the
people of Pakistan and so there is a need to create consensus on national
issues so that long-term policies be devised which continue in the future
government,” he said.
To a question,
Malik said there was no democracy but lotacracy in the PTI and the majority of
the party members were those had left the PPP. “The PTI wanted to bring the
change with the turncoats of the PPP and in the presence of the PPP turncoats
around Imran Khan shows that that Imran Khan had joined the PPP,” he remarked.
He said the PTI
always levelled allegations against the PPP and the people rightly questioned
that “those who have joined the PTI are now clean”.
Malik said
people were being cheated in the name of the electable as those who claimed
themselves as a electable sold the vote and did not have any commitment with
the people and even the party whom they joined as they were committed to
themselves only.”‘The people should elect their own representatives, not those
who cheat them,” he said.
Malik expressed
his fears about the future of parliamentary system if there was any rigging in
the upcoming elections. “I fear that if the elections were rigged then it will
have the serious consequences for the parliamentary system and bring the
presidential system,” he warned.
He said the
people should vote those candidates who did not change their loyalties and sell
the votes to others. “Lotacracy means negation of democracy,” he said.
On the issue of
the water aggression by India, he said the Indian prime minister was taking
steps against Pakistan as first he created rift in the relation between
Pakistan and the United States and later used the FATF. “India as per plan is
working on agenda of destroying agriculture sector and to create a energy
crisis in Pakistan,” he said.
He said, “It was
our hard luck that we failed to stop the construction of the Kishanganga Dam
despite the Indus Basis Treaty and our case in the World Bank was not even
heard. We even provided data to show that how much Pakistan will sustain a loss
due to the Kishanganga Dam and even when get addition 10 days to provide the
requisite data, we failed to provide the data to World Bank,” he said.
He added that
the Pakistan delegation waited for 10 days to meet the World Bank president but
did not get time, which was a failure and action should be taken against the
responsible officials.
He said the
water in Jhelum River had reduced by 27 per cent due to the Kishanganga Dam and
it would also affect the greenery in Neelum Valley. “It will also affect the
production of energy by 30 per cent in the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project,”
he said.
Malik said it
was regretful that the country failed to create a consensus on Kalabagh Dam.
Commenting on Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s visit to Afghanistan,
he said establishing of contact with Afghanistan was a positive development and
Kabul would have to move ahead for good relation relations with Pakistan while
leaving the past behind.
He said unless
and until there was a single US soldier in Afghanistan there would be no peace
in that country.”‘The US has to leave Afghanistan for peace in the region as
peaceful Afghanistan means peaceful Pakistan,” he said.
Malik said
Afghanistan should have to realise that India did not want peace and it was
India which was responsible for the worse relation between Islamabad and Kabul.
To a question
about the security concerns during upcoming general elections, Malik said
Taliban were the biggest threat in the 2013 elections and Daesh had replaced
them in 2018. “The provincial governments have to make foolproof security
arrangements on the polling day for the voters and polling staff,” he said.
He said the
monitoring of 85,000 polling stations should be made through CCTV cameras,
To a question
with regard to regional situation, Malik said the US sanctions on Iran and
India’s water aggression were real issues in the region.
He said there
was a need to revise the country’s foreign policy to end the diplomatic
isolation and to improve diplomatic relations with the countries in Europe and
Middle East. “I in one of my speeches stated that the US will never attack
North Korea and now the US shook hand with North Korea and gave a clear
message,” he said.
He said Pakistan
should also learn the lesson from it and focus on improving relations with all
the countries to end the diplomatic isolation.
The Interview has been published in “THE NEWS
INTERNATIONAL” on June 13, 2018.
Link to original Interview:- https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/329076-malik-for-consensus-on-internal-security-foreign-policy
No comments:
Post a Comment