ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has opened up on the issue of Nadeem Afzal Chan’s resignation as the prime minister’s spokesperson.
“I did not ask Nadeem to furnish his resignation,” said Imran Khan in response to a query, while talking to two news anchors of a local TV channel in Islamabad.
He said his government had some ministers who had experienced cabinet meetings of different parties and none was as democratic as was theirs as they had sometimes up to six hours long debate on a single issue until they reached a conclusion.
“So the decisions are taken with consent of the cabinet members and if someone is so bitter about a decision then as a democratic procedure he could resign, however it is not acceptable that you sit in the federal cabinet meeting and play opposition,” he said.
The prime minister said Nadeem Chan’s act of announcing resignation in media and then apprising him was not suitable though.
On Jan 14, Chan resigned as Prime Minister’s Special Assistant for Political Coordination and spokesman. He had joined the PTI in April 2018 after quitting the PPP. However, Nadeem Chan has said that he was not dissociating with the ruling party.
The PM held former president Pervez Musharraf responsible for the current deteriorating economic situation as he said that Musharraf gave the former rulers NRO then they came to rule the country again and multiplied the foreign debt to four times, hence half of the taxes’ money was spent on paying back the debt.
He said his idea of ‘Naya Pakistan’ was based on following the basic principles adopted by the State of Madina.
“No state can move forward and achieve welfare and progress without meritocracy and rule of law and his government is also based on these basic fundamentals,” he said.
Replying to a question, Prime Minister Imran said the only issue of the PDM leadership was to avoid the accountability through an NRO, which he would never give.
He said the country cannot achieve progress and prosperity until the leaders were made accountable under the rule of law.
Imran Khan said contrary to the bloody revolution which was quick, he was pursuing the slow-process revolution, which came through ballot.