Shehbaz lashes out at govt for remaining dysfunctional

Opposition leader regrets govt, instead of performing administrative responsibilities, is blaming citizens for Murree tragedy

Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday said that the horrific Murree tragedy proved that there is no functional government in the country.

In a statement, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) president lashed out at the incumbent government and held it responsible for the tragedy that claimed the lives of 23 people. “Only incompetency, impassivity, cruelty, and oppression are prevalent in this country,” he maintained. He urged the government to reveal the facts and figures about the deaths and inform the masses about the current situation in Murree so that a strategy could be devised accordingly.

Sharif expressed his concern over reports of tourists stranded in Murree and Galiyat, saying that thousands of vehicles were still stuck there. “The government should ensure everyone stranded in Murree reaches their home safely,” he said.

The PML-N president criticised the government for issuing statements and holding citizens responsible for the incident. He said the government should perform its administrative responsibilities instead of shifting the blame on citizens. He also lauded the local residents of Murree for helping the stranded tourists.

Sharif expressed sympathy with the families of those who lost their lives in the storm, adding that this tragedy had hurt the nation badly. “If precautions were taken on time, it would not have turned into such a tragedy,” he said.

Meanwhile, PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal also slammed the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government for the Murree disaster and said that instead of taking preventative measures, it was “busy applauding the increase in tourism there”. Talking to journalists in Narowal, he said that neither the government nor the Murree administration could be seen in action when heavy snowstorms left 23 people dead, as they ended up stranded in their cars on the roads. “Despite an alert being issued regarding the weather situation in Murree, the government was busy praising the uptick in tourism there,” he said.

He said that tourists were stuck in a snowstorm but the provincial government was busy with matters related to the PTI’s organisation in Lahore. “The government was blaming tourists in a careless, ignorant, and sarcastic manner [for its own shortcomings]” he added. “The government thinks that by running trends on social media they are fulfilling their responsibilities.”

Shedding light on the economic condition of the country, Iqbal said that the “agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a reflection of the government’s incompetency and failure”.

He also said that if allied parties kept standing with the government, the public would consider them equally responsible for the regime’s failure to deliver on its promises.