PTI lambasts secretive tactics behind tweaks

Omar alleges 'spy' agencies running the show in parliament

ISLAMABAD:

National Assembly Opposition Leader Omar Ayub Khan has lambasted the approval process of the 26th Constitutional Amendment, accusing the government of playing a numbers game behind closed doors.

The opposition leader claimed that even JUI-F Emir Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who threw weight behind the bill after ironing out differences over the draft, was unaware of the finalised draft. He decried the dubious tactics employed to muster votes.

Speaking to the media outside Adiala Jail on Wednesday, Omar Ayub also took a swipe at outgoing Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa, predicting that his final decisions would leave behind "a mess," and sarcastically suggested that Isa should now "sit at home with coffee and doughnuts".

Reiterating PTI's reservations over the alleged arm-twisting of party members for their backing, Ayub disclosed that five PTI members had been abducted and coerced into voting under the surveillance of intelligence personnel disguised as parliamentary staff.

"Even women were mistreated, and public property was damaged to create an atmosphere akin to North Korea or Myanmar," he said. He cautioned that no country can attract investment without the rule of law.

Ayub further called out the alleged presence of intelligence agencies within parliament as repulsive, vowing that PTI's protest is aimed at upholding constitutional law and addressing the undemocratic aspects of the 26th Constitutional Amendment.

"We respect the judiciary, but whoever the judge may be, we must stand before the chair," he added.