PML-N, PPP agree on joint strategy against budget

Bilawal says MQM-P and PML-Q support opposition’s stance on production orders


Our Correspondent June 19, 2019
PHOTO: FILE

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) have agreed on a joint strategy to prevent the government from passing the budget for the new fiscal year in its present form and formed a committee of opposition lawmakers for this purpose.

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif in the opposition chamber at the National Assembly on Tuesday.

He was accompanied by PPP leaders Khursheed Shah, Sherry Rehman, Naveed Qamar, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Shazia Marri and Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar.

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PML-N leaders Ahsan Iqbal, Rana Sanullah, Javed Murtaza Abbasi, Marriyum Aurangzeb were also present in the meeting.

The meeting lasted for over an hour during which the two sides exchanged views on the political and economic situation, the opposition’s all parties conference (APC) and the budget for the new fiscal year.

The participants of the meeting observed that the budget was “anti-poor” and agreed on a joint strategy to stop the government from passing it in its existing form.

They formed a committee comprising opposition lawmakers for the purpose that will reach out to the coalition partners of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Bilawal said the second letter written to the National Assembly speaker for issuing the production orders of detained lawmakers also carried the signatures of MNAs belonging to the PTI’s coalition partners.

Bilawal said the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), a coalition partner of the ruling party, had signed the letter for the issuance of the production orders.

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He added that Moonis Elahi of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) had also assured him that his party supported the opposition’s stance on the matter.

The PPP chairman accused the government of resorting to dirty tactics to have the budget passed, noting that the opposition leader in the National Assembly was not even allowed to speak in the house.

Bilawal said the production orders of PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, Mohsin Dawar, Ali Wazir and Khawaja Saad Rafique were not being issued to prevent them from voting on the budget.

He maintained that the budget prepared by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) would cause irreparable damage to the country and the PML-N president also agreed that the opposition must take joint steps to stop the government from passing it.

“The opposition parties have stepped into action to save labourers, farmers, government employees and others from this budget,” he added.

Separately, the leaders of the opposition parties have decided that the debate on budget in the National Assembly would be allowed to proceed smoothly without any protests.

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