Former prime minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Monday sent a cryptic message to the powers that be, stating that the establishment and the public were two sides of one coin.
“The establishment never opposes the public,” he stated, adding that when together, the military and the public strengthen the country.
He said this while addressing the traveling crowd in Kamoke during his ‘haqeeqi azadi’ (true independence) long march.
“Whosoever sides with the looters besmirch their reputation.”
He went on to reiterate that what should he discuss with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif because he was a powerless prime minister and had nothing to offer him.
Defamation
During his speach, Imran – who remains stained from the Toshakhana reference – said that he now plans ot send a defamation notice worth Rs10 billion to Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja for questioning his integrity.
The former prime minister, who is currently contesting the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) verdict in the Toshakhan reference in court, claimed that no court will find him guilty of any illegal activity.
Confident that he would win the defamation case, the PTI chief said he will donate the money to Shaukat Khanum Hospital.
Imran has yet to file such a notice. Moreover, defamation is not a valid cause for legal suit over the verdict of a constitutional body.
The PTI chief, however, hoped the move will teach the chief election commissioner a lesson to not harm the reputation of others.
“Every year Rs9 billion is collected for funding healthcare facilities at the Shaukat Khanum Hospital,” Imran said, adding that he also receives funds to support scholarship-based education at the National University of Modern Languages (NUML) as part of his philanthropy.
He reminded the audience that his cancer hospitals located in Lahore and Peshawar provide mostly free healthcare services and a new hospital is under construction in Karachi to meet the needs of Sindh and Balochistan.
Not afraid
Imran said that he does not have any flats or properties in London or other countries. Hence he did not flee when a slew of cases were registered against him.,“ Imran said, adding that he prays to live and die in Pakistan.
Referring to the death of senior journalist and anchorperson Arshad Sharif, he hoped that God would spare him the death of a coward, and instead, he died like Sharif rather than live in servitude.
He added that only justice is liberating; therefore, everyone should join his march to Islamabad in a quest for freedom.
“Freedom also requires sacrifices of the people,” the PTI chief maintained.
He compared Pakistan’s independence movement with his current quest to de-seat ‘looters’ who had been imposed on them.
The former premier also emphasized that prosperity is an outcome of justice. Without the rule of law, the country will not prosper.
Message to Judiciary
The PTI chief reminded the judiciary that the nation is looking up to them for relief.
“In a society run by humans, justice is upheld while the law of the jungle only applies to animals.”
Immediately after, Imran Khan thanked the chief justice for taking notice of Azam Swati’s custodial torture and that of Shahbaz Gill.
He lamented that the government is trying to silence dissenting voices.
Imran Khan stressed that the country would only prosper when the institutions are strengthened through people’s power.
“No institution can work without the backing of the people,” he concluded.
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