ISLAMABAD: The government criticized the opposition in the Senate for calling a meeting on Tuesday joint session of parliament Without negotiating to build a consensus on electoral reforms.
Senators from the United Opposition also walked out of the House protesting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government, wasting time in the name of trying to build a consensus to gain the support of their estranged allies. There is a plan to run bulldozers on all the controversial bills in the special meeting of Parliament.
Raising the issue in the House, Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Yousuf Raza Gilani said that convening a joint session at a time when the opposition had agreed to talks clearly shows ill-will.
He said that the opposition gave positive feedback To the letter written by the President of the National Assembly, Asad Qaiser, inviting talks.
Trying to find time to woo different allies: PTI
He said, “We expressed our desire to talk for the larger purpose, democracy, rule of law and constitution and betterment of the country. But they are playing in the gallery… it has a malicious intent.” [of the government] Because they lacked the necessary numbers to pass all the bills.
Mr Gilani said the government only used negotiation gimmicks to woo its allies, who had earlier objected to the bills.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) parliamentary leader in the Senate, Sherry Rehman, said the opposition wants a consensus on the controversial bills to send a positive message to the public.
He said the opposition also formed a Joint Steering Committee to work out a joint strategy and wants to find a solution within Parliament.
He rejected the notion that the adviser to the prime minister had tried to give, saying the opposition had not held any secret talks with the government.
He revealed that the government had requested him to say before the media that the joint meeting was postponed on his request.
“Why was the committee announced if the government wanted to bulldoze the 21 bills already passed by the National Assembly and other ordinances into one joint sitting?” He asked.
positive modification
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Dr Babar Awan in his reply justified the government’s decision to convene a joint sitting of Parliament. He said the opposition has every right to introduce any “affirmative amendment”.
He said that a committee had been constituted for the last several months to discuss these bills, but the opposition did not give any importance to it. He said that now the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly in his reply has asked the Speaker to discuss the Electoral Reform Bills and all other laws which were passed by the National Assembly but not by the Senate.
“This is a public time, public money is spent on every session and committee,” he remarked, adding that if the exercise did not yield any results, it was not a good sign for Parliament.
The Leader of the House Dr Shahzad Wasim said the perception was wrong that the earlier joint sitting was postponed due to lack of numbers with the government. “We are his and he is ours. We have good relations with our allies,” he remarked.
He said that the opposition is looking for crutches and not the government. PTI does not need crutches as it is the same party that came to power from the grassroots level after 22 years of struggle by Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Wasim said the election process in the country should be non-controversial and transparent for the continuation of democracy.
The federal government had earlier postponed a joint sitting of Parliament to be held on November 11, saying it would seek to develop a consensus with the opposition on controversial bills, including the Electoral Reform Bill for the use and introduction of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Will try , Wants. I-voting system for foreign Pakistanis in the next general election.
A day later, the united opposition sought written assurance On behalf of the government, NA President Asad Qaiser wrote a letter to Shahbaz Sharif, the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, to initiate negotiations on behalf of the government to negotiate the bills.
He had also formed a committee on legislative work with the concurrence of the government and the opposition. But the joint session has been called again on November 17 (today) without any talks between the government and the opposition.
Published in Dawn, November 17, 2021