ISLAMABAD (APP) – Federal Information Minister Senator Pervaiz Rashid said on Monday that Panama documents have confirmed the stance of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif that they have no assets abroad.
Talking to media persons after attending the launching of Islamabad travel guide book here, Pervaiz said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman (PTI) Imran Khan has been making baseless allegations against the PML-N leadership but the Panama documents have proved him wrong.
He said that he does not ask Imran to quit politics, and if he cannot apologize, at least he should be ashamed of “levelling baseless allegations” against the PML-N leadership.
To a question, Pervaiz said that family members of the prime minister have been living abroad for a long time as they were forced out of the country in late 90s and were not allowed to return home which compelled them to establish their businesses abroad.
He said that sons of the prime minister set up businesses with white money and they have been paying taxes regularly and their assets were legal.
The information minister questioned whether those levelling allegations can certify that their relatives living abroad are getting their education from church charity.
After all someone is paying for their expenses and they do have their businesses, he added. He said that Imran Khan has the habit of the making mountain out of a molehill.
The minister said that the Sharif family has faced several injustices in the past as in 1970s, their Ittefaq Foundary set up by their father in 1939 was nationalized without paying them any compensation amount.
He said that in 1999 the Sharifs were forced to leave the country and their businesses were closed and their family home was converted into old age home. He said in these circumstances the sons of the PM under compulsion set up their businesses abroad.
Perviaz said that Nawaz Sharif had a clean track record and even his worst enemies could not register any case of misappropriation for the mega projects he had launched in his official capacity.
He said that Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto targeted his personal businesses to settle political scores when she was the prime minister but she never framed charges of misappropriation against Nawaz Sharif.
Similarly, he added, Pervez Musharraf, could not even register any case of misappropriation in public funds in mega projects like motorway, banking and telecom sector reforms.
