- KP spokesperson says PTI does not need Fazlur Rehman's support.
- JUI-F chief 'changes stance for personal gains': PTI
- PTI and JUI-F joined forces on the parliamentary front.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday slammed JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman for “legitimising” the ruling regime following the latter's major change of stance on the coalition government amid parliamentary collaboration with the former ruling party.
“We have never needed it [Maulana Fazl] “We have not received any support either in the past or at present,” said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government spokesperson Advocate Muhammad Ali Saif while speaking at Geo news 'Naya Pakistan' program.
The PTI leader's statement came as JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl apparently toned down his rhetoric against the PML-N-led coalition government, which he accused of coming to power through “rigged” February 8 general elections.
Speaking at the National Assembly on Wednesday, the JUI-F chief referred to the alleged manipulation of election results and said that if the current parliament was a product of “Form 45 or 47”, they had to accept it and use it to address all national issues.
Fazl also urged both the government and the opposition to face the challenge of terrorism, saying that parliament is the supreme institution.
The political-religious party and the PTI had reached a consensus on cooperation in the National Assembly and the Senate in August.
The two parties, which have traditionally been archrivals, have engaged in multiple interactions since the February 8 elections due to their mutual concerns about alleged manipulation of election results and irregularities in polls.
The caretaker government later stepped up its efforts to woo the disgruntled ally as President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held separate meetings with him and sought to allay his concerns.
Before the 2024 general elections, Fazl was one of the closest allies of the PML-N and the PPP and headed the multi-party opposition alliance, the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), which successfully ousted former Prime Minister Imran Khan through a no-confidence vote in 2022.
In today's programme, Advocate Saif said that the JUI-F chief always chooses the side in which he sees his benefit and says that clerical politics has “ended” in KP where the PTI-led government is in power.
“He [Fazl] There are not enough seats to convene [KP] “The assembly session even has the support of all opposition members,” the KP spokesman said, adding that the politician was eyeing the KP governorship and two Senate seats.
He further claimed that Maulana Fazl changed his stance on the ruling rulers for “personal benefits”, saying that the latter always benefit their family members. “His brother will become a senator and another relative will get the governorship,” he said, referring to reports that the coalition government offered the JUI-F chief senior posts in return for supporting the ruling rulers.
“We support Maulana’s objections on the ECP [Election Commission of Pakistan] and the elections on February 8,” he said, adding: “But now, he has accepted this system.”
