Govt seeks postponement of JI long march ‘citing security threats’

The fifth round of talks between the government and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) over the petroleum levy and public relief concluded on Saturday without a final agreement, according to a statement issued by the party. The government delegation included Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Adviser to the Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah and Punjab Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique. The JI delegation was led by Vice Emir Liaquat Baloch and included Acting Secretary General Nazir Ahmad Janjua, Special Assistant to the JI Emir Umair Idris, Lahore Emir Ziauddin Ansari, Information Secretary Shakeel Ahmad Tarabi and Salman Sheikh. According to JI, the government delegation requested the party to postpone its long march due to security threats. Baloch said the long march would remain necessary until the petroleum levy was abolished. The government delegation assured the JI of providing “unprecedented relief” to the public at the earliest, the statement said. The government also cited pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and said an IMF delegation was expected to visit Pakistan soon. Baloch said the government should take practical steps to address public demands, otherwise the JI would proceed with protests and the long march. He said the long march, under the leadership of JI Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, would begin from Karachi on Sunday as scheduled. The JI has announced September 20 as the start of its march towards Islamabad. Hafiz Naeem’s remarks Addressing a sit-in in Karachi, JI Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said the government was collecting the petroleum levy to cover up its failures and reiterated that the party would launch its long march from Karachi on Sunday. He criticised the government for citing the IMF when providing relief to the public, while, according to him, finding ways to accommodate its own expenditures. Naeem also alleged that members of the “elite” benefited from successive governments through various influential sectors, including independent power producers, the sugar industry and banks. The JI has been demanding the complete abolition of the petroleum levy and has maintained that its protest campaign will continue until the demand is addressed.

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