‘Backstage reconciliation’ efforts can bear fruit by October 15: Sheikh Rashid
ISLAMABAD – Awami Muslim League (AML) leader Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has said that behind-the-scenes attempts for ‘reconciliation’ can be successful by October 15.
He said otherwise, there would be ‘judo-karate’ on the streets. “Former prime minister and PTI Chairman Imran Khan has delivered a lovely swinging yorker,” Sheikh Rashid said in a statement on the social media platform Twitter on Friday. “Now PPP and Shehbaz must deal with the issue of [army chief’s] appointment,” he added. In addition to criticising Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the former interior minister stated that Foreign Minister and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari did not even opt to fly in Shehbaz’s aircraft to Samarkand. He predicted that ‘judo-karate’ would be practised on the streets if the covert efforts to reconcile did not succeed by October 15. Sheikh Rashid, a close ally of Imran Khan’s party, further said that the MQM-P’s internal intrigues had put them in danger. “Time does not wait if decisions are not made on time,” he remarked.
Rashid’s statement came days after ex-PM Imran made a dramatic statement, saying the process of naming the next army chief should be postponed until after the next general elections. The suggestion effectively meant giving the incumbent COAS, General Qamar Javed Bajwa another, albeit brief, extension. He claimed that neither Asif Ali Zardari nor Nawaz Sharif met the criteria for appointing the new army chief, and that both lacked the moral ground to participate in such an important decision-making process. General Qamar’s six-year term expires in late November and the chief military spokesperson has already stated that the current army chief has no plans to seek an extension. So far, there has been no reaction from the military’s media wing to Imran’s latest statement.
Article source: https://www.nation.com.pk/17-Sep-2022/backstage-reconciliation-efforts-can-bear-fruit-by-october-15-sheikh-rashid