Parliament should not to approve the GST :Munawar Hasan

Lahore:  Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Syed Munawar Hasan, has termed the Supreme Court verdict against the GST as a puff of cool breeze and urged the parliament not to approve the levy as a token of respect for the judiciary.

Talking to the JI workers at Mansoora before his departure for Karachi on Saturday, he counseled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to prove himself a representative of the 180 million people, and not of the capitalists and businessmen. If the rulers decide to make sacrifice themselves instead of burdening the nation, the people would gladly do the same.

Syed Munawar Hasan said that a team of 18 ministers would be sufficient at the federal level. Therefore, instead of having a large cabinet, the Prime Minister should  save the money and divert maximum funds to the relief of the poor people. Mian Nawaz Sharif should not touch in months the heights of “popularity” gained by the previous regime because of their anti people policies in five years, he remarked.

The JI Ameer said, it seemed the rulers wanted to steal the relief provided by the Supreme Court to the masses regarding the GST, by getting parliament’s approval. He said that the government should show moral courage and withdraw the GST in order to lessen the tax burden on the masses. This would also minimize the ill will that had been created for the government on the issue and also avoid an impression of a clash between the executive and judiciary at the very beginning, he said.

Syed Munawar Hasan said, if only the trillions of dollars owned by President Zardari, Main Nawaz Sharif and other rich Pakistanis in foreign banks were transferred to the Pakistani banks, the country’s economy would be strengthened and the government would be saved the shame of begging from the IMF. In the interest of the economic strength of the country, the rulers should swallow the bitter pill by themselves this time,  and establish the tradition of providing relief to the poor man. However, if the rulers adopted the other course, the masses would make life difficult for the elected assembly members, he warned.