Former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif held former army chief Bajwa and ex-ISI chief Faiz Hameed responsible for Pakistan’s downfall. (Image: Reuters File)
Nawaz Sharif said Pakistan is being forced to go to Beijing and Arab capitals begging for dollars as the nation risks defaulting on its debts.
Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif blamed former Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and former spymaster Faiz Hameed for the turmoil the nation finds itself in.
“Today India has reached the moon, the G20 meeting is being held in India, and Pakistan is begging countries around the world for a billion dollars,” Nawaz Sharif said.
Sharif lauded India’s economic growth and compared it to Pakistan and pointed out that the Pakistani Prime Minister has to go to Beijing and capitals of Arab nations with a begging bowl asking for funds. He said it is regrettable that Pakistan is on the brink of defaulting on its debts.
It should be noted that former Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa and former spymaster and the director general of the Inter-Services Intelligence (DG-ISI) Faiz Hameed were favoured by the former prime minister Imran Khan.
While Bajwa had his tenure extended during Khan’s reign and is accused of rigging the elections to engineer the former cricketer’s victory in the 2018 elections, Hameed was appointed as DG-ISI during the Imran Khan regime.
Nawaz Sharif, meanwhile, seeks to return to Pakistan as poll bells toll there. The elections in Pakistan have become a contentious issue as the judiciary, legislature and the executive are involved in a tug-of-war over the dates of the election.
Earlier in August, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said that the elections could be held in January 2024 but Pakistan President Arif Alvi, who is from Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, said elections will be held in November, as per the constitutional mandate.
Since the dissolution of the National Assembly was premature, the elections must be held within 90 days, according to the Constitution of Pakistan. In normal cases, when the assembly completes its tenure elections are held in 60 days.
Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif remains in self-imposed exile in London since November 2019 due to health reasons.
He was disqualified by the Pakistan Supreme Court and barred from holding any public office in 2017 and was again barred from holding public office for life 2018 after a probe ordered by the Supreme Court on Panama Papers revelations which found him guilty of not disclosing funds earned from his son Hussain Nawaz’s Dubai-based firm.
