Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman Rejects Govt Request to End Sit-ins

LAHORE: Sep 07: Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman has rejected the government's request to call off the ongoing sit-ins in exchange for a three-day deadline, warning that peaceful protests will continue and expand into a countrywide wheel-jam strike if the petroleum levy is not abolished immediately. Addressing the participants on the 23rd day of the sit-in outside the Chief Minister House in Lahore, which saw large participation from citizens and women arriving from Faisalabad Division, he stated that the ruling elite must end their luxuries, heavy protocol, and misuse of state resources at the expense of ordinary citizens.

The protest was also addressed by Central Punjab Emir Javed Kasuri, Jamaat-e-Islami Women’s Wing Acting Secretary General Samina Saeed, and renowned analyst Hafeezullah Niazi, while ViceEmir Osama Razi, Acting Secretary General Nazir Ahmad Janjua, JI Emir Political Affairs Advisor Raja Muhammad Arif, and Information Secretary Shakil Ahmed Turabi were present on the occasion.

Rehman highlighted that alongside major sit-ins in Lahore, Peshawar, and Karachi, demonstrations are underway at thirty other locations across the country, including Quetta. He cautioned that if the government fails to show seriousness, these thirty locations could expand to three hundred, complemented by a train march and a potential long march toward Islamabad. He emphasized that growing public anger over the petroleum levy and Independent Power Producers (IPPs) could easily transform into a movement to bring down the government. Referring to the talks held between the JI delegation and government representatives, he shared that proposals were presented on how to generate public relief by curbing state expenditure, adding that the government team requested time until Thursday to consult and respond, after which negotiations will resume.

The JI chief declared the interest-based financial system as the root cause of the country's economic turmoil, demanding its immediate elimination. He pointed out that a mere one percent reduction in the interest rate saves five hundred billion rupees for the national exchequer, meaning a three percent cut could yield fifteen hundred billion rupees in savings. He further noted that halting the annual payment of seventeen hundred billion rupees to IPPs for ungenerated electricity, combined with reduced interest rates, would easily stabilize the economy and allow the complete abolition of the petroleum levy. Criticizing the governments in Punjab and Sindh as incompetent products of Form 47, he condemned the failing healthcare and education sectors in Punjab and widespread corruption in Sindh. He urged the nation, particularly the youth, to join JI’s non-partisan movement, paying tribute to the steadfastness of the sit-in participants and reaffirming JI’s historical role in safeguarding the finality of prophethood and promoting Islamic unity.