Imran suggests he might not accept trust vote to oust him

ISLAMABAD: Staring at a potential exit from office as the countdown to Sunday’s no-trust vote started, Pakistan PM Imran Khan on Saturday exhorted his supporters to take to the streets against the “foreign conspiracy”. against his government, but asked them not to worry as “a captain always has a plan”. “This time, I have more than one plan. . . God willing, we will win tomorrow. I will defeat them in the (National) Assembly,” he said while taking questions from the public as part of a live broadcast. Imran also suggested that he might not accept a vote to oust him. “How can I accept the result when the entire process is discredited?” Khan told a select group of foreign journalists at his office. “Democracy functions on moral authority what moral authority is left after this connivance?
The move to oust me is blatant interference in domestic politics by the US,” he said. Earlier, Khan said that the “establishment” had given him 3 options: “resignation, no-confidence (vote) or elections” after the Opposition filed a no-trust motion against him in Parliament. Khan, however, did not elaborate what he meant by “establishment” In terms of numbers, Imran’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf effectively lost its majority in the 342-member National Assembly when its key ally, Muttahidda Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), walked out of the coalition last Wednesday to join the opposition ranks. Imran gave the impression he was more concerned about the alleged foreign conspiracy — he let slip on Thursday that the US was behind it — than the opposition’s attempt to vote him out .
Imran said there was enough proof that politicians were being “bought like goats” to topple the government. “The conspiracy started abroad and Mir Sadiqs (traitors) here are helping those people. But history never forgets traitors. And I want Pakistan’s history to not forget these traitors either. It is your responsibility. Don’t let them feel that you have forgotten,” he said. The PM warned of legal action against those who “betrayed the nation”. “I met my lawyers today. We won’t let them go free. ” Addressing the youth of the country, Imran said, “You don’t have to sit silently (because) if you stay quiet, you will be on the side of the bad. I want you to protest and speak up against this conspiracy —not for me but for your future. ”
Last week, Imran accused the US of meddling in Pakistan’s affairs by conspiring with the opposition here to remove him for not siding with West against Russia & China. While Imran is put to the test in the National Assembly, Punjab’s provincial assembly will vote for a new CM on Sunday. Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, who is from the PML-Q but is PTI’s candidate for the vacant slot, is contesting against Hamza Shehbaz, the PML-N candidate and son of party’s president Shehbaz Sharif. To become CM, a candidate needs at least 186 votes in the 371-member house. The province’s CM from PTI, Usman Buzdar, resigned after a no-confidence motion against him.
(With inputs from agencies)