Season of splits: The aisle that divides the K-P Assembly

Thursday’s rumpus on the house floor unlikely to affect government as Asad Qaiser reaches out to opposition.

PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s lawmakers take pride in declaring K-P Assembly different from its counterparts across the country. They often use the term jirga for the legislature, saying it reflects the traditions of the province.

Staying true to this description, the house remains largely tranquil with only minor outbursts in every session, steering a safe distance from the choppy waters of physical violence. However, this changed on Thursday when probably for the first time in the assembly’s recent history, some of the treasury lawmakers were literally up in arms against opposition MPAs after being instigated by a comment from opposition leader Maulana Luftur Rehman of the JUI-F.

The calm before the storm

Interestingly, the ongoing session began with an eerie calm quite contrary to widespread expectations of a noisy sitting fuelled by the existence of certain elements pointing toward a showdown between the opposition and government MPAs when the house regrouped after a nearly four-month-long recess.



A no-confidence motion filed by the opposition against Chief Minister Pervez Khattak had been pending at the Assembly Secretariat, while PTI’s prolonged sit-in in Islamabad had united all political forces in the country, charging the atmosphere in the lead-up to the assembly session.

But the anticipation soon fizzled out as the session started on a positive note with the opposition leader stealthily withdrawing the no-confidence motion, a move seen by many as a ‘fix’ carried out at the behest of CM Khattak.

However, Thursday’s fracas at the floor of the assembly showed that the bonhomie was not genuine and resentment among both sides of the aisle was still there.

The bitterness needed an outlet and the opposition leader’s comments against women PTI supporters lit the spark.

The resultant bedlam graced television screens across the country; the people’s elected representative and a provincial minister an inch away from throwing punches, fortuitously held back by security staff.

Moreover, jeering slogans of ‘Go Imran Go’, ‘Go Nawaz Go’ and ‘Go Diesel Go’ which resounded in the house were quite contrary to the long-cherished norm of respecting leaders from all parties.

Finally, Speaker Asad Qaiser adjourned the session till November 10 and the MPAs cleared out.

However, local media reports suggested that some lawmakers even tried to get physical outside the assembly hall.

In sharp contrast, since the beginning of the session on October 24, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle had refrained from souring the atmosphere of the house. The opposition parties in particular can be credited for not saying a word against PTI’s dharna in the first six days of the session. However, a single remark from the opposition leader unleashed the fury of treasury members.

The ruckus is unlikely to pose problems for the treasury benches, as Speaker Asad Qaiser’s initiative to reach out to Maulana Lutfur Rehman has kept the opposition from going the extra mile. The opposition leader had agreed to address a press conference on Friday against the treasury lawmakers’ behaviour, however, the presser was cancelled after Qaiser contacted him.

Pro-Malala resolution

Incidentally, the one common point all these quarrelling politicians seem to agree on is to not utter a word of praise for Pakistan’s teenage Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai.

No mention was made of Malala’s achievement when the session began and probably none would have been made if PPP’s Nighat Orakzai had not raised the matter on October 28.

However, the lawmakers conveniently linked a resolution praising Malala to one demanding the release of Afia Siddiqui who is jailed in the US. And the very next day the house passed a resolution demanding Afia’s release, while the demands for a few words of praise for Malala fell on deaf ears.

The National Assembly, Senate, Punjab and Sindh assemblies have passed resolutions congratulating the Swat native, unfortunately, K-P—her home province—is yet to honour its brave daughter.

A resolution to congratulate Malala has been submitted by ANP’s Syed Jaffar Shah and PPP’s Nighat Orakzai in the Assembly Secretariat. It is likely to be taken up when the house meets after the Muharram break, however, it is not yet clear whether it will be passed unanimously or not.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 2^nd, 2014.