Mansoor Ijaz declines to come to Pakistan to justify

Amidst security concerns, Pakistani-origin US business tycoon, Mansoor Ijaz, refused to come to Pakistan. His counsel, Akram Shiekh claimed that he (Mansoor) will not appear before the judicial commission to record his statement in the controversial memogate scandal.

Mansoor Ijaz, the key player of the memogate scandal, has expressed his reservations with the security arrangements made in Pakistan for his arrival, and thereby requested the judicial commission to record his statements in London or Zurich, his lawyer Akram Sheikh told media on Monday.

The counsel stated that he had held a teleconference with Ijaz after meeting with IG Police Islamabad and had briefed him about the security arrangements that have been made for him.

“No assurance has been given with regards to his (Ijaz’s) life or property. It seems like a well-orchestrated trap to hold Ijaz indefinitely in Pakistan. He refuses to knowingly fall into the government’s trap,” Sheikh said.

About Rehman Malik’s assurances of making arrangements for Ijaz’s security, the lawyer expressed, “I don’t trust Rehman Malik. I trust Husain Haqqani more than I trust Rehman Malik. Did Benazir Bhutto not die in this country even after getting security assurances?”

Mansoor Ijaz accused the incumbent government of producing a memo, which he delivered to the U.S. last year, asking America to help stop a supposed military coup following the US Navy raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Akram Sheikh clarified that Ijaz was concerned about Pakistan’s money not being wasted and thus does not want the security to waste its money on him. “So, he wants to record his statement while sitting in his office in London. He is ready to tell the truth and present all grafts to the commission,” he added.

Sheikh said that he had written another letter to the attorney general seeking details of the security being provided to Ijaz during his visit to Pakistan.

The judicial commission, constituted by the Supreme Court to probe the memogate scandal, ordered Mansoor Ijaz to appear before the panel personally to record his statements.

The Parliamentary Committee National Scandal (PCNS) also invited him to appear before the body over the crisis.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=10146

Posted by Faisal Farooq on Jan 23 2012. Filed under National, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.