ZULFIQAR AHMAD

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Imran Khan Wednesday said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif must speak the truth about the huge properties owned by his family abroad.

Speaking to party workers on the occasion of Insaf Student Federation's (ISF) foundation day, Imran said the ruling elite is mentally enslaved of the West, which is worse than physical slavery.

He called upon the workers of his party to speak the truth always if they want to achieve something big for themselves and for society, adding a leader who is a slave mentally will never be able to steer the country out of the crises because for him/her the thing which comes first is vested interest.

"I advise you to speak truth always [and] the 'truth' which Nawaz Sharif has been speaking before the apex court," Khan said in an obvious reference to the Prime Minister's claim about his properties abroad in the wake of Panama Leaks.

The PTI Chairman said that a powerful and independent judiciary, which refuses to take pressures of any kind and strengthens state institutions such as National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), etc, is the key to eradicate the menace of corruption from the country.

During his 19-minute speech, he spent almost six minutes to calm down the activists of his party who scuffled with one another repeatedly. Asking them to sit down and be quiet frequently, Khan refrained from making any political statement except the aforementioned short comment about the Prime Minister.

"I will not start until you all sit down," Khan told the participants who preferred to gather on and around the stage as Khan took to the rostrum. "Hopefully, the day would come when I would deliver a speech and you would listen to it carefully while sitting in your chairs but it seems that day is far away," Khan lamented.

As Imran left the stage, some young activists also engaged in a scuffle which, according to some party leaders, took place as majority of the youth wanted to take selfies with their leader.

Earlier, Khan called upon the youth of his party to adopt four habits, speak the truth, overcome fear, conquer the ego, and side by the justice always, in a bid to bring change in their lives directly and in society and Pakistan indirectly.

He sought to substantiate his points while quoting verses from the holy Quran and couplets from Allama Iqbal's poetry.

"You will be able to take bold steps only if you overcome your fear. Serving and thinking about your own desires will take you nowhere," Khan advised the youth convention.

He said spending capital in human resource development and strengthening state institutions could lead Pakistan towards betterment. "A country cannot prosper until investing in education and public health. And in KP, PTI is focusing on these two most neglected sectors," Khan claimed.

He said Pakistan direly requires strong and independent state institutions including NAB, police, judiciary, tax authorities, etc.

He added that the KP government has also been focusing on this front.

Asad Umar, a PTI MNA from Islamabad advised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to take Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to his country.

"It would be good if you [Erdogan] take your friend [Nawaz Sharif] with you," Umar commented in response to 'go Nawaz go' slogans raised by the youngsters.

He said that parliaments in developed countries are considered to be role models for youngsters but in Pakistan in the name of democracy political parties are hiding one another's corruption and wrongdoings.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak, Jehangir Khan Tareen, Naeemul Haque, Murad Saeed, and student leaders also spoke on the occasion.