Minister of Information Fawad Chaudhry said that the opposition should drop its no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan because of the international economic situation and the political bitterness. The PTI government “will see what can be given in return,” he said.
He said that on Aaj News TV show Aaj Rana Mubashir Ke Saath on Sunday night.
In his speech, Chaudhry said that one big problem with the country’s politics is that it was very polarising. He said the differences between the opposition and the government were “personalised” instead of being based on policy.
“A lot of rancour has been caused, hard statements have been made, and an environment has been set up,” the information minister said. “A doctrine of unintended consequences comes into play, and a lot of things happen that both parties don’t want.”
People in Pakistan would be so angry when the no-confidence motion is voted on in two to three weeks that it would hurt the country, he said. In his opinion, the opposition should take back the motion, and “we will see what can be given in return.”
Government leaders could talk with the opposition about electoral reforms, changes to the National Accountability Bureau’s laws, and the dates and processes of the next general election. Chaudhry said this when asked what the government could do for the opposition in this case.
“No matter what the opposition’s concerns are, we can talk about them with open hearts,” he said. “We will keep doing politics for 2-3 weeks, and when we look back, we will see that our economy has been damaged so much that it will be hard to get it back.”
The country should come first, he said.
If the opposition wanted early elections, they could also make that demand, the information minister said, adding that while there was “no harm” in talking, no one would try to push for things on their own, even though there was no harm in talking.
Chaudhry told the host that the PTI’s plans to hold a rally at Islamabad’s D-Chowk could lead to a security situation on the day of the vote, and he said it could happen.
The PPP recently held a long march that reached the capital on March 8. The minister said the PTI thought “all those people who bring small rallies should see what a big one looks like,” and that the rally would be a “sort of referendum.”
