-Hints at possibility of snap polls; slams ‘imported govt’ for inflation
-Says Country to face food insecurity if Farmers not given targeted subsidies
-Adds national security will be in danger if Agriculture sector not sustainable
By Anazl Amin
ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan has accused the ruling PML-N and the top electoral watchdog of working in cahoots to rig the next general elections.
“The ECP [Election Commission of Pakistan] takes orders from Hamza Shehbaz and Maryam Nawaz… they are planning to rig the next elections,” he said while addressing the farmers’ convention in Islamabad on Monday.
The PTI chief has time and again accused the ECP and its chief of being the henchman of the PML-N and sought Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikander Sultan Raja resignation to ensure transparency in the polls.
Imran, the ousted premier, also hinted at the possibility of snap polls, saying that he is expecting that the elections would be held soon. Speaking about the prevailing economic crisis, the former prime minister reiterated his allegations that incumbent rulers were installed into power through the US-backed regime change conspiracy which he said cannot dare to buy oil from Russia at discounted rates.
“Despite the being the ally of the US, India is purchasing oil, weapons from Russia but slaves [incumbent government] is not allowed to buy oil.”
He also lashed out at Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, saying that he had become the in charge of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and appointed his loyalist to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to “close down” his corruption cases. “They did not come [in power] for the people of Pakistan… they only came to get relief in corruption cases. We don’t expect anything from this imported government,” he added.
Speaking about the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Imran said the war has sparked fears of famine in the country due to a shortage of wheat.
“Pakistan is facing a major challenge of food security. The Russia-Ukraine war has disrupted the wheat supply and caused an increase in its price. The country can never proposer until pay attention to the agriculture sector,” he added.
Meanwhile, Khan warned of food insecurity in the country if the coalition government does not focus on giving targetted subsidies to farmers.
Addressing a farmer’s convention in the federal capital, the party chairman said: “Farmers are given subsidies all over the world and if the agriculture sector is not sustainable, this would put national security in danger.”
The former prime minister said that the country cannot move forward if farmers are ignored. “This will lead to food insecurity in the country,” he added.
Commenting on the rising inflation, the ex-premier said that the farmers showed a record production during the PTI government’s tenure as it had provided subsidies to them. “Cotton production increased by 17%, sugarcane by 9.4%, and sugar production by 24% during the PTI’s tenure,” Khan added.
He said that the prices of petrol, electricity, and ghee had increased during the incumbent government’s tenure.
Talking about his government’s efforts to provide ease to the farmers, the PTI chairman said his government provided a Rs132 billion subsidy on urea fertiliser. “Our government tried its best to help farmers,” he reiterated.
Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Friday unveiled the “progressive budget” for the year 2022-23 and the government decided to increase its grant and allocate Rs21 billion for the sector. The finance minister said agriculture was the backbone of the country’s economy.
“This will help increase the output of the sector. Moreover, the Ministry of National Food Security & Research has devised a growth strategy for the next three months with the help of the provinces and planning commission,” he added.
Ismail said that the strategy aims at making farmers prosperous, dealing with the changing weather, promoting “smart” agriculture, self-reliance, value addition, and agro-processing.
He also said that the government “will increase the agricultural production to increase arable produce and increase per acre yield.”
