The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Sunday announced the party’s Sindh chapter will join the “street movement” for incarcerated former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s release with the arrival of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, who is due to visit Karachi from Jan. 9-11.
In a press conference, PTI Sindh President Haleem Adil Sheikh and several senior leaders of the party said they would take Khan’s “clear and unequivocal” message of resistance directly to the people.
According to Sheikh, Khan has personally entrusted Afridi with the mission of mobilizing the masses to restore their “stolen mandate.” Emphasizing that the PTI is a federal party that spans all of Pakistan, he said the PTI founder’s message would echo across Sindh with the chief minister’s arrival.
The KP government has announced that Afridi would reach Karachi on Jan. 9 and lead a rally to Insaf House. He would then conduct meetings with party leaders and delegations. His visit also includes interactions with traders at the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry, a Meet the Press at the Karachi Press Club, and street movements across districts South, Korangi and Malir.
On Jan. 10, Afridi is due to visit Hyderabad, participating in a public gathering at Jamshoro en route. During his Hyderabad leg, he would participate in protests at Kotri, addresses to the High Court Bar Association and Press Club, and meet journalists, intellectuals and farmers.
Upon his return to Karachi, the PTI is planning meetings, media talks and street protests on Jan. 11. Afridi has also been invited to meet with Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, pending confirmation.
According to Sheikh, senior PTI leaders, including Secretary General Salman Akram Raja, ministers, and parliamentary leaders, would accompany Afridi throughout the tour. He hoped the Sindh government would avoid “fascist tactics,” adding public mobilization is a constitutional right.