Staff Reporter
Islamabad
The Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman announced on Tuesday that all opposition lawmakers will submit their resignations to their respective party heads by December 31.
He made the announcement at a press conference here after the PDM leadership held a meeting to decide its future strategy. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz were joined by the JUI-F chief as he addressed the media. “By December 31, opposition lawmakers from provincial and national assemblies will hand in their resignations to their respective party heads.”
The announcement comes days before the opposition’s next rally in its anti-government campaign in Lahore on Dec 13. Opposition leaders have said they will organise the rally despite the government warning of legal action and citing the risk of the spread of the coronavirus.
During the press conference, Rehman said that the steering committee will meet today to decide the schedule for further rallies and demonstrations. The meeting will also decide the time and the date for the long march towards Islamabad, he said. The PDM chief said that former premier Nawaz Sharif and former president Asif Ali Zardari also participated in the meeting during which all the participants expressed the commitment towards holding the next rally in Lahore on December 13.
Responding to reports about Prime Minister Imran Khan calling for a national dialogue, Rehman said the PDM had rejected his offer. “He is not worthy of dialogue.”
He said that the decisions were taken “unanimously”, adding that the opposition will not disappoint the people of the country. “The Lahore rally will be historic and it will be the final nail [in the coffin] for the government.”
Fazl also reiterated that come what may the opposition parties will hold “historic rally” at Minar-e-Pakistan in Lahore on December 13 and warned the PTI government against creating any hurdles.
“Today, Imran Khan has given statements like he was drunk and we reject his offer of any dialogue and will not grant him any NRO,” said Fazl.
Responding to a question, Fazl said the government has been “shaken” by the PDM’s series of rallies and “now it only needs a final push to be collapsed”.
When asked whether the PDM was afraid of a crackdown by the government, Fazl said that the alliance hadn’t even thought about it.
The JUI-F chief stated categorically that if the Opposition lawmakers decide to resign from the assemblies, they will not backtrack from the decision later.
“We will not end up licking our resignations,” he said, when asked whether the PDM lawmakers will take a U-turn after resigning. “Once we give them [resignations], we will not lick them like they did,” he said, referring to various lawmakers
of the PTI who had resigned during the 2014 dharna but then returned to the Parliament a few months later.
When asked to comment on the “selectors” and their role, the JUI-F chief said, “Whether they stand with them or not, the movement is against this entire system and rigging,” he said, warning those who had rigged the elections to “think about their fate”.
