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Monday, November 5, 2007

‘Youth can bring country out of crisis’ - Imran Khan addresses LUMS students

Note: Declaration of Martial Law in Pakistan was announced during his speech, and also his arrest orders issued in the meatime.


LAHORE: The Pakistani youth should play their part in determining what direction Pakistan is to take in “the defining moments of its history”, Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan said at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) on Saturday.

The university’s Law and Politics Society invited had invited Khan to speak on Role of Youth in Pakistan’s Politics.

“The mismanaged War on Terror, the increasing rich-poor divide, the prevalent economic injustice and the failed education system are the primary crises that Pakistan faces today.” He also spoke about the solutions his party thought fit for these crises.

Khan said the first step for Pakistan was to strengthen the rule of law by establishing an independent judicial system. The next step, he said, would be to form a taxation system that would minimise the burden on the lower classes. An ‘education emergency’ should be declared in the country, he said, and the education system should be reformed. The PTI chief said the current education system, which supported divergent subsystems such as madrassas, Urdu medium and English medium systems, created schisms in the society.

Towards the end of the session, students were given the chance to ask questions. Asked about the situation in Swat and surrounding areas, Khan said the troops should immediately be pulled out and a political solution be sought. Most of his answers centred on the importance of a politically aware and active youth. Asked why the PTI had not been able to gather mass support, he said that at the start of his political career, he had sought support from educated people who “did not want to join politics”.

At the end of the lecture, the students cheered the PTI chief and followed him to his car. Talking to Daily Times Mustafa Ahmed, a law student, said Khan was a ‘modest and intelligent politician’ but did not pay sufficient attention to the theme.

Source: Daily Times

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