Ahsan opposes using ECL as political tool
lahore — Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Saturday said the Exit Control List (ECL) should not be used as a political tool since it is meant to achieve specific objectives.
Talking to the media after a conference on China-Pakistan Economic Corridor at a local hotel here, he said the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on Wednesday formally requested the Ministry of Interior to place the names of some members of the Sharif family on the ECL in view of legal proceedings going on against them in the country and added that a formal decision would be made on merit.
Criticising opposition leaders PTI chief Imran Khan and Awami Muslim League leader Sheikh Rashid, Ahsan Iqbal said the people had already rejected their politics.
He said the world had disapproved the disqualification of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
Ahsan Iqbal said it seemed that the West wanted to pressure Pakistan to achieve certain objectives, so it is pushing to place the country on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) watch-list. Ahsan Iqbal said that such pressure tactics would negatively impact Pakistan’s efforts in the war against terrorism.
Highlighting the role and sacrifices rendered by Pakistan in the fight against terrorism, he said any move to place Pakistan in the “grey list” will be counterproductive and undermine the extensive work that Pakistan had carried out under the National Action Plan to eliminate terrorism. He said Pakistan is working with the US, the UK, Germany and France for the nomination to be withdrawn.
Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal also called upon Norway’s support at the up-coming meeting of the FATF in Paris. During his one-day visit to Norway, Ahsan interacted with a large number of Pakistani-Norwegians at an event organised by the Embassy of Pakistan in Oslo.
The minister said while a few years ago, Pakistan was considered the most dangerous place in the world, today it is ranked among the fastest emerging economies in Asia. Pakistan has become one of the top 5 economies in the world which have shown the highest growth rate in the last five years, he added. — APP