Federal Minister for Railways Hanif Abbasi, while addressing the National Assembly, stated that lawmakers frequently criticize the bureaucracy despite having been a part of the same system for decades.
Without directly naming Khawaja Asif, he said that lawmakers on the treasury benches should join the opposition if they intend to criticize the system. “Don’t blame the system; you have been a part of it for 40 years,” he reminded Asif. Earlier, Khawaja Asif had accused the Sialkot bureaucracy of plundering the national treasury and of poor management during the recent floods.
On Governance and Performance
Abbasi described Pakistan’s governance structure as a “hybrid system” and pointed out that those who have been part of it for 40 years are now condemning it. He remarked that if this continues, the treasury benches might as well move to the opposition.
The minister went on to praise the Punjab government’s performance, calling its measures commendable and the management of recent rains in Rawalpindi exemplary. He added that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s foreign policy has strengthened Pakistan internationally, citing his warm reception in China and claiming it put a much larger country on the defensive.
Abbasi also criticized the opposition, saying it lacks the ability to play its role effectively, and accused them of following the PTI founder, who, according to him, ended his own governments multiple times. He concluded by saying that politicians themselves have damaged the sanctity of Parliament.
