ISLAMABAD 13 Sep (Online); Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that a change of government in Punjab would bring political stability given the current state of affairs and also confirmed reports about the federal government flexing muscles for a political change in the province.<\/p>\n
Speaking in an interview on private tv channel, he said: \u201cYes, we always have the option of [change of] Punjab government and we will act when we deem it feasible.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked whether the change would bring upheaval to existing uncertainty in the country, he replied, \u201cWe are working on it politically and the change will bring political stability to this uncertainty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Talking about the appointment of the new army chief due in November this year, the defence minister said it was the prerogative of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the government\u2019s allies would be taken into confidence.<\/p>\n
He added that consultations would be made with the institution as well as it would forward the names of recommended officers for the new chief. \u201cSo far no consultation has been started towards it,\u201d Asif remarked.<\/p>\n
He also said that he was not in favour of a \u201cminus-one formula\u201d in politics. PTI Chairman Imran Khan had recently tweeted and blamed the government for \u201cmoving on minus-one formula\u201d to remove him from the political arena.<\/p>\n
Asif said it was not the government\u2019s or politicians\u2019 job to go for such tactics, adding that he personally would not advise it.<\/p>\n
He also acknowledged that the PML-N was struggling politically for the past few months, adding, however, that the party \u201cwould come back successfully\u201d.<\/p>\n
Asif also said the return of party supremo Nawaz Sharif was not on the cards as of yet but he would return. \u201cHis return will be a big boost to the political situation of the country,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Talking about the situation of MNA Ali Wazir, the defence minister said his and other issues, like those of missing persons, need to be looked into and called for national consensus on them.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I would say Wazir\u2019s case needs to be considered on humanitarian grounds,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
ISLAMABAD 13 Sep (Online); Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that a change of government in Punjab would bring political stability given the current state of affairs and also confirmed reports about the federal government flexing muscles for a political change in the province. Speaking […]<\/p>\n
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