PML-N Senior Vice-President Shahid Khaqan Abbasi on Tuesday said dialogue would be held with the institutions, not the government, which were affecting politics, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

Abbasi warned that the country would not move forward if the things done in 2018 general elections were to be repeated. “This government is a product of 2018,” he remarked.

He was talking to media persons after the hearing of the LNG reference at an accountability court in Islamabad.

Earlier, the accountability court judge had adjourned proceedings after he was informed that the lead defence counsel – Barrister Zafarullah – was in isolation after one of his family members contracted the coronavirus virus. 

Abbasi – the former prime minister and a close confidant of PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif – told journalists that they were talking about the defects in the system, not coming into power.

Replying to a question about the opposition strategy in the coming days, weeks and months, he said they would see what should be the line of action at Tuesday’s PDM meeting.

Blasting the current setup, the former prime minister said the petroleum crisis was created by the government itself and noted that the economy was in shambles.

The remarks came as PML-N Vice-president Maryam Nawaz in Lahore described the PDM leadership meeting in Islamabad as important and said that considerable discussion had been held on many issues.

“The people are leading this movement. It is a people’s movement,” said Maryam who added that the struggle was aimed at rescuing them from the challenges they had been facing.

Before leaving for Islamabad, Maryam told media persons at Jati Umra that they were not afraid of cases as so many FIRs had been registered against them, adding that the entire world witnessed how Lahore came out and welcomed her during the yesterday rally.

She gave this statement as multiple cases were registered against the PML-N leaders and workers in several police stations in the provincial capital after the Monday’s rally.

The PDM meeting chaired by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman will deliberate upon different options including resignations from assemblies and the proposed long march towards Islamabad. 

Former president Asif Ali Zardari and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif will attend the huddle via video link while PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is also expected to participate after fully recovering from the coronavirus infection.