JI chief announces long march towards Islamabad on Sept 20

Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Friday announced that the party will turn its ongoing sit-ins against inflation and petroleum levy into a long march towards Islamabad on September 20.

Addressing a JI protest rally in Gujranwala, Hafiz Naeem said that the party has decided to launch a nationwide movement against the government if the petroleum levy is not withdrawn.

He added that negotiations between the JI and the government’s negotiating teams has failed, claiming that the government is insisting it had no alternative sources of revenue.

“End the levy and cut your unnecessary expenditure,” Hafiz Naeem said, adding that the government would face a strong public movement if the levy was not abolished.

He asked party workers whether they are ready for a movement and said the government could deploy as many containers as it wanted, as men and women would participate in the protest.

The JI chief also criticised the government over its economic policies, saying petroleum levies, electricity-related charges and taxes should be withdrawn. Taking a swipe at Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, he questioned the expenses on her London visit and alleged that she was travelling on an expensive aircraft while ordinary citizens were struggling with rising transport costs.

He also criticised the government’s reliance on the International Monetary Fund (IMF), saying the government could not use the lender’s conditions as an excuse for imposing further burdens on the public.