K-P speaker warns governor against playing ‘political game’

Ghani declares Ghulam Ali’s act of returning copter bill unconstitutional

PESHAWAR:

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly Speaker Mushtaq Ghani has declared K-P Governor Ghulam Ali’s refusal to accord his assent to the controversial Copter bill and returning the same to the assembly as “unconstitutional”.

In a note sent to the governor, while informing him of his (speaker’s) powers and the latter’s act of “encroachment”, wrote that the Provincial Assembly Secretariat is bound to forward the opinion of the legislature as it is.

The speaker rejected the governor’s remark ‘calling it a general bill’ and further clarified that this is a money bill. The speaker enclosed documentary evidence to press home his point.

Ghani further wrote that the governor’s non-approval of this bill is against Article 115 and 116 of the Constitution.

He said that we will not take any unconstitutional action nor will we allow anyone (to take similar unconstitutional action).

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Ghani said that the office of the governor is a constitutional office, whose job is to uphold the constitution, so the governor should not be a part of any political game keeping in mind the sanctity of his office.

It should be noted that the bill approved by the Assembly has legalized the use of government helicopter since 2008, which is mostly used by Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan.

Last week, the Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ghulam Ali, had said that he would send back the unmerited helicopter bill meant to provide blanket immunity to the illegal users of the provincial government’s helicopter after clearly writing his suggestions on it “by using the powers conferred to him by the constitution”.

The bill, he said, was prepared and passed through the provincial assembly in a hasty process overnight to provide blanket immunity to the leader of a specific party by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government.