Sadiq again offers to mediate govt-opp talks

National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq once again invited the opposition to sit across the table with the ruling alliance, assuring the opposition of his full cooperation in holding negotiations with the government and reaffirming his role as the "Custodian of the House."

The NA speaker reiterated his offer months after the government-opposition talks failed, saying dialogue was the only way to resolve political differences. The speaker said that he would act as a bridge between the two sides to achieve this objective.

Sadiq extended the invitation during a session of the National Assembly when opposition member and former speaker Asad Qaiser raised a matter regarding the opposition's privileges.

He stated that the Constitution, the law, parliamentary traditions and rules were equal for all and their adherence was essential for strengthening democracy. An official statement from the NA secretariat, however, said that despite his offer, the opposition staged a walkout and left the house.

Referring to the arrest of Indian Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi, Sadiq noted that even in that case, no "production orders" were issued. He emphasized that no forum was greater than the National Assembly and the Senate as a "Grand Jirga," and urged all political forces to come forward to strengthen Parliament.

Previously, the negotiations between the two sides, which began on December 23, 2024, aimed to address political and economic challenges, had collapsed after just three sittings. PTI's demands were presented in the third round as a prerequisite for broader talks.

However, PTI had called off negotiations within a week, claiming the government failed to meet its conditions of constituting judicial commissions within seven days. The government, on the other hand, had accused PTI of prematurely walking away from the process without awaiting a formal response "within seven working days".

Later on, the PML-N-led ruling coalition had formally ended its negotiations with the opposition PTI after the opposition party had rejected Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's offer for resuming talks to settle long-standing issues between the two sides.

The government had officially closed the door on negotiations with PTI following the opposition party's abrupt withdrawal from the dialogue process and linking further sittings with the formation of judicial commissions to probe May 9, 2023, and November 26, 2024, incidents.

The confirmation had come from Senator Irfan Siddiqui, the spokesperson for the government's negotiation committee, expressing regret over PTI's decision and emphasizing that talks could have provided an opportunity for settling thorny issues had PTI continued the process.

Senator Siddiqui had said that PTI specifically took names of PTI founder Imran Khan and other leaders, including Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Omar Cheema, Ijaz Chaudhry, Yasmin Rashid and Mahmood Rashid, and demanded their release, saying PTI did not write these names in its charter of demands but said that the government should facilitate their release.