‘Pindi to Welcome the PTI March’

PTI MNA  Sheikh Rashid Shafique says election date is a must to end political conflict in the country

Sheikh Rashid Safique is a leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the nephew of a former Minister of Interior, Sheikh Rashid Ahmad. He is a PTI member of National Assembly (MNA) from NA-60, Rawalpindi. Since the recent gun attack on PTI chief Imran Khan in Wazirabad, he along with some other local leaders has been leading the PTI’s protests in Rawalpindi region. As the PTI’s long march is supposed to reach its climax in Rawalpindi, Rashid Shafique has been playing an important role in mass mobilization in the twin-city region.

Bol News interviewed him to know his opinion on the recent political crisis, which is apparently getting more serious by every passing day.

Q. There is a lot of political turmoil in the country. What’s your take on it?

RS: There is only one solution. There is an urgent need to change the current imported government. After that, fair and free elections should be held.

If you want to see political and economic stability in the country, then an interim government should be installed within three or four months, and given a five-month deadline to hold elections. The political parties need to be given full confidence that elections are being held. Otherwise, there is no chance of stability.

Q. When do you see the elections taking place?

RS: I see elections in either February or March.

Q. Why did the PTI reject the FIR which was registered with regard to the attack on Imran Khan?

RS: They had registered a similar FIR previously. It is nothing but just a piece of paper. The PTI refused to accept it and has approached the court in this connection. Imran Khan received four bullets, and eleven other PTI activists also received bullet injuries, one of whom was martyred. And yet it is the police that is the complainant in the FIR. Had they registered the FIR as per the version of PTI chairman, things wouldn’t lead to protest sit-ins, especially in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Q. How will Rawalpindi respond to the long march?

RS: When the long march arrives in Rawalpindi, Imran Khan himself will be leading it, and the entire local leadership of Rawalpindi, including Sheikh Rasheed and others, will be standing shoulder to shoulder with him. I hope there will be at least one million people on the roads that day, filling up the entire space from Mareer Hasan to Faizabad.

When these marchers enter Islamabad, they will not be stoppable by these 5,000 to 6,000 shipping containers the authorities have placed in the capital territory to block their routes.

Q. What will happen if the federal government decides to deploy paramilitary or armed forces to counter protesters?

RS: The federal authorities cannot intervene in provincial matters. If they do, they will be violating provincial autonomy which is guaranteed in the Constitution. And then the country’s judiciary will also be inevitably drawn into the controversy and would most likely rule against the actions of the imported government.

Q. There are also reports of arrests of some political leaders…

RS: Arrests are a small price to pay for the cause for which we are fighting.  I have already spent 15 days in the Attock jail for no reason whatsoever. They (the federal government) are claiming that our arrest warrants have been issued. Still, God willing, we will welcome Imran Khan in the Rawalpindi region in the most befitting manner, and take him on to Islamabad.

Q. What will happen if Imran Khan is also arrested?

RS: This is a mistake which the federal government will never commit. The protesters are mostly peaceful for now, but if Imran Khan is arrested, the scene may change.

Q. There are issues of public mobility due to road blockades and traffic disruptions by protesters. What do you say about that?

RS: I agree that citizens are facing problems, and I apologise for that. However, a two-day holiday has already been announced for schools and colleges. Besides, we aren’t doing it for the sake of pleasure. We are seeking justice. The protest sit-ins would end in 10 minutes if justice is dispensed right now.

Q. Is there any chance that PTI may return to the parliament?

RS: this is a matter that only Imran Khan can decide.

Q. Is the general public enthusiastic about your long march?

RS: After Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Imran Khan is the first political figure who has sunk deep roots among the people. If the government decides to hold elections tomorrow, Imran will win a two-third majority, or even more. People may feel tired and uninterested due to other problems, but they are willing to go out to vote for PTI.

Q. What’s your take on the federal government’s performance?

RS: It has miserably failed to deliver on any front. It is in power in the centre, and its ministers are enjoying perks and privileges.  Some of them don’t even have a portfolio. And yet at times the National Assembly runs short of quorum.

They would like their term to be extended for one more year, but their bad policies are crushing the poor masses who are selling their kitchen utensils to pay their electricity and gas bills.

Q. What would be your advice to the government?

RS: If it is patriotic and cares for the people, it should help restore stability by giving Imran Khan an election date.

Q. Will the PTI dissolve its governments in the KP and Punjab?

RS: It may happen only if the federal government announces an election date. There may be some give and take. But those governments mean nothing to Imran Khan.