Omar's fiery speech caps NA proceedings

NA YouTube channel goes blank as PTI leader denounces hastily passed bills

ISLAMABAD:

The National Assembly session was abruptly adjourned for an indefinite period following a heated address by Opposition Leader Omar Ayub Khan, who vehemently denounced the passage of bills.

The previous day, the government swiftly passed all six bills aimed at extending the tenures of the chiefs of the country's three armed forces and increasing the number of judges in the superior courts.

During his address on Tuesday, PTI leader Omar Ayub condemned the approval of six key bills, calling it a "shameful incident" and labelling the coalition government a "government of thieves".

The remarks ignited an uproar in the House, prompting Deputy Speaker Mir Ghulam Mustafa Shah to intervene swiftly and order the expungement of Ayub's comments from the record.

The deputy speaker noted that NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had a day earlier mentioned plans to give PTI Chairman Gohar Khan the floor, but proceedings had been disrupted by loud protests.

Attempting to restore order, Shah instructed that Ayub's microphone be turned on.

However, the official live stream on the National Assembly's YouTube channel was cut off as Ayub resumed his speech, leaving viewers in the dark.

The livestream only resumed when PTI-backed independent lawmaker Aurangzeb Khan Khichi - who had defied party lines to support the 26th Amendment - began speaking.

"Standing beneath these pure names of Allah, I say that may Allah destroy me if I have taken even a single penny [as a bribe]," Khichi said.

"This is true that our party leadership has sold us," he said, asserting his innocence and denying any financial inducement. Khichi further claimed that he had prevented the formation of a forward bloc within the PTI on that day, asserting that time would ultimately prove his actions to be justified.