Can talk to everyone except one person, says Zardari
The PPP Chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, has alleged that Prime Minister Imran Khan was seeking military intervention in the country’s political affairs by delaying voting on no-confidence motion in National Assembly and to create a constitutional crisis.
He made these remarks on Saturday during the crucial National Assembly session summoned on Supreme Court’s directive to hold voting on the no-trust motion against the premier.
Major leaders from both opposition and treasury benches including federal ministers including Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Asad Umar, Shireen Mazari and PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif, PPP Chairman Bilawal, and former president Asif Zardari among others delivered speeches.
Addressing the house, Bilawal said that the NA speaker is committing contempt of court and abrogating the Constitution. The five-member bench of the Supreme Court has given an order and no agenda item can be raised except the order of the day, he added.
On April 3, Bilawal said their minister had trapped the PM, president and deputy-speaker in “abrogation of the Constitution”.
“It is their conspiracy to either let elections take place without electoral reforms or to create a crisis so big that it results in dictatorship and a military rule. They want to end democracy because as long as it is present, Imran Khan’s politics cannot be saved,” he remarked.
Bilawal demanded of the speaker to follow the court’s orders warning him that he will be disqualified over the contempt of court. “This is not the first time in Pakistan that a speaker’s ruling has been thrown by the court. In the past too, a speaker sitting in the same chair had given a ruling which was then done away with through a suo-moto notice. The court has ordered for the process of April 3 to be completed and voting has to take place. Taking to Twitter, Bilawal said the PTI government and its speaker continues to commit contempt by refusing to even start agenda of the day as ordered by the court. He said the Constitution also mandates vote on no-confidence today.
“While running away from the vote, Imran Khan has violated the Constitution again… [we] will not leave NA until our vote,” he wrote on his official handle.
In another tweet, the PPP chairman said the ongoing debate in the lower house was illegal since it was not part of agenda on April 3, when NA session on no-confidence voting was prorogued. “Clearly malafide 10:30am agenda is yet to start. Speaker ignores demands to implement court order. Calling cabinet meeting at 9pm shows clear intent not to vote today… collusion between PM and Speaker is clear.”
Meanwhile, addressing the National Assembly session, Pakistan Peoples’ Party Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari has said that except one person, they can talk to friends for the betterment of Pakistan.
The former president said that today is the voting day on the no-confidence motion and now there is no time for anything else but vote, vote and vote and nothing but the vote.
Asif Zardari said that where should I start the stories, from the General Umar in the East Pakistan or the Engro. But I will not do it. Imran Khan said that Asif Zardari is on the target of his gun. Imran is a hunter, a cricketer and also running the country. The friends on the treasury benches are talking about export figures. These figures of export I had left. The economy is going down. The State Bank raised the interest rates just two days ago. Just after the Supreme Court decision, the rupee got stronger and the stock market had strengthened.
The PPP co-chairman said that the PPP is the only party which has a political university and several members on the treasury benches have passed out from that university. They will understand soon and will come back to the PPP.
“I ask very humbly and with humility that you please start the voting process. I do not want to approach the court against you for violation its order. We talk about the betterment of the country so please conduct the voting so that we can progress further and Pakistan can also progress.”
