In its CEC meeting held today in Islamabad, the PTI reiterated its belief that the Constitution is a sacrosanct document of the people of Pakistan, guaranteeing the integrity, security and solidarity of the country. PTI opposes any individual that undermines the constitution and rule of law. 

The CEC demanded that there was a dire need for Pakistan to evolve a home-grown, independent foreign policy which will provide the state with the nation’s backing.

The CEC condemned the lack of a substantive political strategy on the part of the government in Swat. The ensuing political vacuum is singularly responsible for the failure of the writ of the state in these troubled areas.

The CEC resolved that:

The government’s hastily ordered military operation started in Swat, to coincide with President Zardari’s visit to the USA, was ill-conceived and premature – without giving time for political options to be formulated and implemented. 

Military action is not a solution for any problem; and the ongoing one in Swat has caused colossal human disaster and tragedy by rendering millions of Pakistanis displaced and homeless.

The millions of people still stuck in the war zone should immediately be provided immediate safe passage by the government.

The military should refrain from using indiscriminate artillery weapons and aerial bombardment so as to avoid the killing of innocent civilians. The CEC demanded of the government to bring the military operation to an early conclusion.

Despite serious reservations about the military action and its timing, the CEC empathized with the poor soldier confronting his own people turned into misguided and brutalised militants and giving his life for a war wrought on him by a corrupt and decadent ruling elite that cannot see beyond the lure of American dollars that have become as much of a curse for this hapless nation as the criminal extremists in our very midst. 

The PTI condemned the cavalier attitude of the President and government where foreign trips continue to predominate their agendas while the country burns away with no apparent governance or writ of the state visible anywhere.

Balochistan continues to be off the government radar despite the critical situation in that province. The PTI CEC called on the government to immediately extend a general amnesty to all Baloch political leaders and to begin development programmes in that province, to bring to an end the sense of deprivation that prevails.
 
 

The CEC expressed shock at the continuing lavish expenditures of the government in the face of growing economic hardships being faced by the common citizen. It called on the government to begin a programme of austerity in official spending so that scarce resources can be redirected to development programmes. 

The CEC condemned the government’s sham of reducing oil prices as one more ploy to hoodwink the nation.

The CEC once again reiterated the PTI’s commitment to justice for all, rule of law, and one education system for all. It called on its members not only to remain committed to the PTI’s principled position on national issues but to spread their message clearly across the nation in these troubled and confused times.

The PTI called upon its workers, members and supporters to direct their entire energies and resources to help the displaced and homeless people in order to enable them to endure their misery and to pave way for their safe return to their homes.