KARACHI - Sindh Minister for Information Shazia Marri on Saturday termed the precarious peace in Karachi as a conspiracy against the country.
“Karachi is Pakistan’s financial hub and hence any attempt to disturb its peace was an attempt to subvert the country,” Marri said while adding that “Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah has taken serious notice of the (recent) incidents of violence and ordered stern action for bringing the situation under control”.
Those behind targeted killings would not be spared, reiterated the information minister, saying the killings in the recent shooting sprees were grievous loss to the citizens.
Marri laid stress on the need for greater unity, and condemned the mindset and attitude towards stoking violence and ethnic strife in the province, particularly Karachi. “Sindh is a peace-loving province. And no-one would be allowed to mess with its peace,” she held.
In her comments about PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif’s statement against Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, the information minister alleged that the former premier along with his brother (Shahbaz Sharif) was crafting an environment of chaos and confusion.
Nawaz Sharif had spoken scathingly of Gilani for seeking advice from the youth of Bahawalpur over the issue of (writing) letter(s) to the Swiss authorities (to pursue the corruption charges against President Asif Ali Zardari).
“His (Sharif’s) statement makes no sense, nor does he possess political acumen,” asserted Marri as she exhorted the PML-N chief to learn from the past. “Prime Minister Gilani clearly stated that he should either listen to the court or follow the Constitution, under which he had taken the oath, which was legally binding on him,” she maintained, saying that because of the provincial autonomy through the 18th Amendment, the provinces were able to make decisions and that there was no room for disharmony amongst them.
Marrri – the wizard of words – came down hard on Nawaz Sharif, saying the former premier’s underestimating the youth and using them for mere publicity stunts (such as the distribution of laptops) were “radically exceptionable”. “The Nawaz-League continues showing its narrow mindedness, with its chief, a so-called national leader, keeping his focus on a single city of Punjab.”
Marri also piled accusations on Shahbaz Sharif, alleging him of public instigation for his own political gains. “The Punjab chief minister must have tried to set up power plants rather than playing with the sufferings of the people of his province,” she added. “If Mr Shahbaz Sharif had genuine concerns over the electricity loadshedding problem, he could have used the over draft from the federal government for purchasing generators for the people.”
Marri also said that the federal government added over 3,000-Megawatt to the national grid but neither Nawaz Sharif nor retired general Pervez Musharraf could produce even a half megawatt of power during their governments. She contended that had former slain premier Benazir Bhutto not introduced the IPPs, the people could have been in darkness (today).
She said Nawaz Sharif was not sincere with the people. “He should not have begged and left the country after brokering a deal with Musharraf. She advised Shahbaz Sharif to ensure justice to the people of his province, where policemen raped a young girl. “He must check the rising police atrocities after the Sialkot, Gujranwala and Faisalabad incidents.”
The minister asserted that President Zardari had brought the country out of the dictatorial darkness. “The president knew that following the path of democracy was a challenge one, but he went for it to strengthen democracy in the country under Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto’s policy of reconciliation.