PM vows to come back stronger irrespective of no-confidence vote result

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan addressed the nation on Thursday warning that a foreign country had hatched a conspiracy to remove him from power and vowed to come back strong irrespective of the outcome of the no-confidence motion.

“Today, I have to talk something important about the country’s future,” the prime minister said in his opening remarks. “I decided to do this address live because Pakistan is at a defining moment and we have two paths ahead of us.”

“But before that, I want to tell you that why a person like me entered politics. I am a fortunate person whom Allah had blessed with everything, including fame and wealth. I am from the first generation that was born in a free country.”

“I entered politics because I came to the conclusion that Pakistan can never be the country that Allama Iqbal dreamt of and Quaid-e-Azam struggled for even in poor health. The main purpose of Pakistan was to become an Islamic welfare state, which traces back to the state of Madinnah.”

The prime minister continued, “I decided the day I became the prime minister that our foreign policy will be independent, which means it will be for Pakistanis. It doesn’t mean that we wanted enmity.”

PM Imran Khan said that despite Pakistan’s participation and sacrifices it made for the United States’ “war on terror”, Islamabad never received appreciation. The prime minister noted that when the tribal areas were bombarded by US drones strikes, he was the only politician who staged a sit-in. “None of the senior politicians raised their voice against it as they were afraid that it might draw United States’ ire,” he added.

The prime minister said Pakistanis suffered due to the “war on terror”. Therefore, the premier said when he came into power, he aspired for an independent foreign policy. “Our policy was not anti-US, Europe, or even India. It became anti-Indian after New Delhi revoked the special status of Kashmir and broke international law in August 2019,” he said.

In a slip of the tongue, he said the United States and then moved on and stated that a “foreign country” had sent a “threatening memo” which was against the Pakistani nation. “The letter stated that the no-confidence motion was being tabled even before it was filed, which means the Opposition was in contact with them,” he alleged.

The premier stated that it was an “official letter” that was communicated to Pakistan’s ambassador, who was taking notes during the meeting. He said the envoy was told that if Imran Khan remains in power, Pakistan would face “difficulties”.

“It was an official document that said that ‘if Imran Khan remains the prime minister, our ties will suffer and you will face difficulties,” he added. PM Imran Khan said the memo was against him, not against the government and “it stated that if the no-confidence motion passes, Pakistan will be forgiven, if not, there will be consequences.”

“Is this our standing? We are a strong nation of 220 million,” he asked the nation. PM Imran Khan said the letter does not mention any reason and only wanted his ouster.

“Our ambassador told the foreign official that the prime minister had visited Russia after delibrations with [the country’s top brass]. But the foreign official asserted it was just Imran Khan’s decision,” he revealed.

PM Imran Khan said the foreign official knew that the ones who would come into power after him would have no issues taking orders from external forces.

“What is most disturbing is that our people, who are sitting here, are in contact with foreign powers,” he said, referring to “three stooges” —  Shehbaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari, and Maulana Fazlur Rehman. “They have links with the people through whom the conspiracy happened, They are stooges,” he said.

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