Summary Saad Rafique urged political parties to reform themselves, respect public decisions and improve political conduct, warning that new political actors could emerge if they failed to do so.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – Former federal minister Khawaja Saad Rafique has said he no longer has hope in political parties, warning that if they fail to reform themselves, “cockroaches” will emerge, although it remains unclear who would lead them.
Addressing a ceremony, Saad Rafique said political parties must fulfill their responsibilities and end the practice of levelling allegations and taunts against one another. He also called on the parties to stop producing sycophants.
He said people were becoming increasingly disillusioned with the country’s political system and political parties must accept the people’s decisions. He warned that if public decisions were not respected, the country would continue to face tragedies.
Saad Rafique said he had won an election by 40,000 votes, but the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) did not accept his victory. He stressed that political parties should respect election results and the decisions of the people.
The former minister said he supported smaller provinces but added that their problems could not be resolved merely by granting them rights and that intentions also needed to be corrected. He said the country had historically treated its own people like a stepchild.
Saad Rafique stressed the need for an effective local government system, saying it would provide a platform for new people to emerge. He said people lacking the required ability were being imposed on the public.
He said the political life of the existing political parties was now limited and added that he wanted to speak the truth during his lifetime. He said society needed to bring different voices together to create awareness.
The former minister said there was currently no need to form new political parties and that the existing “lame and broken” parties should continue to be relied upon.
Saad Rafique said the establishment wanted political parties to work sincerely. He clarified that he was expressing these views in his personal capacity and not as a representative of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
He said the middle class should be given opportunities to enter assemblies, adding that it was not correct to say that every election had been interfered with, although he acknowledged that interference had occurred in some elections.
Saad Rafique said protests had been organised during the tenure of an elected government, while similar circumstances had also emerged during the elected government of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
He reiterated that political parties would have to reform themselves and warned that if they failed to do so, “cockroaches” would emerge, although it was not known who would lead them.
