Angry members from both sides urged the government to go beyond “rhetoric” and deal with the repeated violation of its airspaces by Nato-led forces “pragmatically”.
Former information minister Sherry Rehman described the attacks on a border force in Kurram tribal district as ‘encroachment on our daily lives’ and asked the government to put up a united fight to stop them.
A Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) member said his party would be demanding mid-term elections if the government fails to protect the integrity and sovereignty of the country. “What kind of government is this? What kind of a sovereign state are we? These (drone strikes) were happening during Musharraf’s (former president) rule and they are going on now as well,” said MNA Khawaja Saad Rafiq. “We want a roadmap of when can we get rid of this”.
He also appeared to be critical of what he termed a retirement by the government to form the national security policy and delegating this power to the military and secret agencies. “The military should not only have the right to frame security policy…we should provide the people with leadership,” Saad said.
The house will resume debate today (Thursday).
Kalabagh Dam
A resolution that the Punjab provincial assembly passed on Tuesday in favour of the controversial Kalabagh dam echoed in the house, dividing it on ethnic basis. While members from Punjab ignored party policies to support the construction of the dam, lawmakers from other provinces continued to oppose it vehemently.
Walkout
Earlier, both the factions of the PML staged a joint walkout from the house against reports that the government had cut development funds of provinces and also for an authority involved in the reconstruction of areas ruined by the 2005 earthquake.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 7th, 2010.
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