Opposition divided on PM’s resignation

Opposition plans to move a bill based on ToRs in parliament

ISLAMABAD: The grand opposition Tuesday failed to develop consensus on demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s resignation as part of the terms of reference to probe the Panamagate scandal.

They, however, made a strategy for going forward on the matter which includes breaking off talks with the government, moving a bill in parliament and even street protests.



“The government is seemingly in no mood to move forward [on the ToRs], therefore, we have decided to move a bill based on the ToRs [of the opposition] in Parliament,” said Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Shah Mehmood Qureshi after Tuesday’s marathon session in Islamabad.

Leader of the Opposition in Senate Aitzaz Ahsan said that they have shown flexibility but now a bill will be introduced in the upper house of Parliament in the ongoing session.

Talks on formulating terms for a probe in the Panama Papers, which disclosed that three scions of the PM had secreted wealth in offshore accounts, collapsed in mid-June when parliamentary committee could not finalise the next date of the meeting.



Talking about the demand for Nawaz’s resignation, made forcefully by the PTI when the Panama Papers were first released on April 4, Qureshi simply told reporters that the “matter did not come under discussion” during the meeting.



However, Sheikh Rashid of the Awami Muslim League hinted at a discord when he said that “we have to take all political parties along, therefore, have come up with this plan [bill].”

A source privy to developments at the meeting told The Express Tribune that “no one [political party] is ready to take the blame for derailing democracy, therefore, they could not unite over the demand for [PM’s] resignation.”

He added the opposition parties will first move a resolution in parliament to build moral pressure before a bill is based on ToRs is introduced. If the government blocks the bill, “then they would resign from the assemblies.”

Opposition parties had hinted staging street protests but a consensus decision on them was taken today.

Qureshi said that in case the government tried to create hurdles in the passage of their bill, “we would be left with no option but to approach the masses.” He said that all opposition parties were briefed about the eight meetings opposition leaders had with the government.



“The government did not respond to the opposition with sincerity and the talks hit deadlock,” he explained adding that the government continued with this attitude even after Nawaz returned from London earlier this month when the opposition had requested ‘re-engagement’.

“The government has made a commitment to present itself for accountability but it has backed out from that,” he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 20^th, 2016.