Imran slams govt for ‘lying’ on drone attacks

[LahoreEstate]

Saturday, February 14, 2009
By Mumtaz Alvi

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Friday castigated the previous and incumbent governments for ëlyingí to the nation on drone attacks, which were being flown from air bases inside Pakistan.

Reacting to revelations made by Chairperson US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Dianne Feinstein that the US Predator spy planes were being flown from airbases inside Pakistan, Imran said in a statement that parliament must ask the government to take back all facilities from the US and its spy agencies.

He expressed dismay over the manner in which the present and the previous governments “lied” to the people over the Predator attacks. “It is shameful for the government of Pakistan to collude with the US in the killing of its own citizens and then lying about their role in these attacks,” the PTI chief went on to say.

He noted that even more astounding had been the deliberate attempt by the present government to hoodwink and lie to parliament. “Once again, President Zardari and the government headed by Prime Minister Gilani have chosen to not only aid and abet in the killing of innocent Pakistanis, but have opted to treat the Parliament not as a sovereign elected body but merely as a rubber stamp to be used and ignored at will,” he said.

He demanded of the Parliament to take serious note of this deliberate “deceit and lying” and immediately order a probe into the matter. After all, it was the right of every citizen to demand that Parliament, on which vast amounts of the poor hapless tax payersí money was spent, at the very least ensure that Pakistani lives were protected by the state, not made vulnerable, he said.

The PTI chief emphasised that the Parliament should note that the drone attacks and what was euphemistically called “collateral damage” was in fact extra-judicial killings and, therefore, in contravention of Article 4 of the Constitution of Pakistan.

APP adds: Imran Khan on Friday said the war on terror and extremism can be won only through dispensation of easy justice and holding dialogue. In a talk with the APP, Imran urged the government to resolve the problems of the tribal areas and Swat through negotiations. He said the government should fulfill its promises made with the masses, adding that the PPP should also fulfil its commitment on independent judiciary.

http://thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=162477