ISLAMABAD, JUL 20: PTI Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday alleged that PPP Co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari was behind a plot to bribe his party’s MPAs into switching loyalties ahead of the upcoming chief minister’s elections.
“Today Lahore is seeing a repeat of the Sindh House horse trading that happened in Islamabad with up to Rs500m being offered to buy MPAs. The main architect behind this is Asif Zardari who gets NRO (national reconciliation ordinance) for his corruption and purchases people with looted wealth. He should be jailed,” the former prime minister tweeted.
Imran said that attempts to purchase MPA loyalties were not only an attack on democracy, but also on society’s moral fabric.
“Had SC (Supreme Court) taken action & debarred these turncoats for life it would have acted as a deterrent. Don’t handlers of US regime change conspiracy’s imported govt realise severe damage being done to the nation?” he questioned.
Imran’s claim followed similar allegations made a day earlier by other PTI leaders, who said the party’s MPAs were being threatened and pressurised by the government through intelligence agencies and police to ‘manipulate’ the voting.
Meanwhile, PTI leader Shahbaz Gill alleged today that an MPA of the party was “bought” by Zardari and the PML-N for Rs250m.
He said that on Imran’s instructions, a protest has been called at Lahore’s Liberty Chowk today against the alleged horse trading.
Meanwhile, addressing a press conference in Islamabad, PTI Vice President Fawad Chaudhry alleged that a party MPA from Rahim Yar Khan, Masood Majeed, had fled to Turkey after being bribed with Rs400m. He accused Zardari of being behind the ploy.
Chaudhry said that three more MPAs had submitted their affidavits to the apex court, explaining how they were offered bribes. He also accused PML-N leader Attaullah Tarar of being involved in the alleged attempt to bribe PTI MPAs.
“We don’t know how many MPAs have been approached. No person who is involved in such tactics will ever be forgiven by people. This habit of sticking to power should now end.”
