Ayub declared opposition leader in NA

NA secretariat refuses to recognise PTI-backed independent MNAs as members of SIC

ISLAMABAD:

PTI leader Omar Ayub on Tuesday was declared the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly after the secretariat of the lower house of parliament issued a notification for this purpose.

However, the NA secretariat has refused to recognise the PTI-backed independent MNAs as members of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC).

The notification came following the successful scrutiny of Ayub’s nomination papers as per Rule 39 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of the NA.

It added that Ayub had been declared the opposition leader with effect from Tuesday.

According to news statement issued by the secretariat, PTI Chairman Gohar Khan, Amir Dogar and Ayub himself met with NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq.

It added that the nomination of the leader of the opposition was discussed during the meeting and Ayub’s name was submitted to the speaker.

The statement continued that the deadline to submit the nomination papers for the position was till 6pm on Monday.

However, as no other candidate submitted their papers by the deadline, Ayub was appointed to the slot unopposed.

Last month, in a formal move, the PTI-SIC alliance put forward his candidacy, submitting the necessary documents to the NA speaker’s office.

The development came in the wake of approximately 90 independent MNAs backed by the PTI joining hands with the SIC post-February 8 general elections.

The submission of nomination papers was initiated by Malik Amir Dogar, in the presence of SIC's leading figure Sahibzada Hamid Raza, along with MNAs Ali Mohammad Khan, Riaz Fatyana, Dr Nisar Ahmad Jatt, and other key personalities.

The realisation that the formal process of appointing a leader of the opposition had not been completed struck the PTI-SIC coalition during the NA session last month.

Read Impasse over NA Opposition leader continues

It occurred when former NA speaker Asad Qaiser urged the current one to give the floor to the leader of the opposition.

Sadiq, in response, questioned who had declared Ayub as the opposition leader.

The speaker then guided the PTI-SIC lawmakers, stating that they needed to follow the formal process, and only then would Ayub officially become the opposition leader.

Now that the NA opposition leader has been appointed, the Public Accounts Committee as well as special and standing bodies of the House would be formed.

In a related development, the NA secretariat has refused to recognise the PTI-backed independents as MNAs of the SIC.

The independent members were not recognised to join the SIC in the light of the Peshawar High Court's decision.

The current tally of the ruling alliance’s seats in the NA has been set at 226 while that of opposition stands at 102.

In the opposition alliance, the number of candidates who supported Ayub’s candidacy for the slot stands at 90 including the PTI-backed independent MNAs as well as those belonging to the Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen and Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party.

However, two other opposition parties, the JUI-F with its 11 MNAs and BNP-M with its one, have neither endorsed Ayub for the position nor submitted their applications to field their own candidates for the slot.
According to the secretariat, out of 336 MNAs, 328 have taken their oath while eight seats are still vacant.