Becoming party in memogate case was not good decision, admits Nawaz

Becoming party in memogate case was not good decision, admits Nawaz

Islamabad (Staff Report/Agencies): Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has regretted his decision to move the Supreme Court (SC) against the then Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government and former ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani in the memogate case.

“I should not have become part of the memogate case against PPP government and Husain Haqqani,” said Sharif while talking to media outside the accountability court on Tuesday.

The Memogate scandal surfaced in 2011 when Pakistani-American businessman Mansoor Ijaz revealed that he had received a letter against Pakistan Army from Haqqani for the then-US joint chiefs chairman Admiral Mike Mullen.

Following Ijaz’s claims, a judicial commission was set up to probe the memo, which mentioned a possible military take over in Pakistan following the killing of Osama bin Laden in a US raid in Abbottabad.

In the memo, assistance was sought from the US to save the then government of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) giving an impression that PPP government is Pro-US.

Later, the judicial commission found that the memo was written by the former ambassador and was authentic.

The matter was taken to the Supreme Court by then opposition leader Nawaz Sharif after which Haqqani had resigned as an envoy. Nawaz Sharif demanded an inquiry into the matter and also threatened to resign from the National Assembly if the Zardari government did not satisfactorily probe the matter.