Yasin says that he was bound by party’s discipline will however continue to raise his voice against injustice. PHOTO: AFP
Yasin’s diatribe was pointed, harsh and emotional and left the treasury members gasping for breath with its audacity, while opposition members took it as an opportunity to ridicule the government. Such was the state of affairs that the clamour from desks being thumped and the accompanying jeers came solely from the opposition benches.
Khalil, advisor to chief minister for transport and K-P minister for industries Shaukat Yousafzai were sacked on May 1 for their ‘unsatisfactory performance.’
The former adviser, who arrived when the assembly reconvened after its tea break, demanded that the speaker to allow him to speak.
Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) leader Sikandar Sherpao, who was about to start his speech on the death of nine people after inhaling poisonous gas fumes in Dera Ismail Khan, stopped when he saw Khalil.
In his speech, Khalil told the lawmakers that he was sitting in a Labour Day program in Labour Colony, when someone whispered into his ear that he had been sacked. The enraged lawmaker described in detail the initiatives and reforms undertaken during his watch.
Khalil then laid directly into the attending K-P chief minister Pervez Khattak. “55 posts of class IV in my department went to Nowshera and only seven went to people of Peshawar,” he alleged, adding that a carpeted road was being constructed to benefit about two families.
He asked the government to explain what is meant by good or bad performance.
Without naming Khattak, he lampooned the chief minister and said that if people from the ‘forward bloc’, the opposition, media or those in the bureaucracy were unhappy with his policies, then they should mention it.
“They could have called me and asked me to vacate this seat and I would have resigned from my position,” he explained, adding that the way he was removed was unacceptable.
“They have carried a drone attack against themselves and amputated their own hands and legs.”
Noting the limitations he faces from the party’s disciplinary committee, he said he will continue to raise his voice against injustice.
He added that he had organised the party in Peshawar after joining the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and was the elected president for Peshawar. “My fellows and I won the Peshawar district for the PTI.”
Questioning the injustice of giving only two berths in provincial cabinet to Peshawar, where party had clean swept, in preference for Nowshera where PTI could only muster five seats, had been given the post of province’s chief executive besides other ministry.
Khalil claimed that he is the only lawmaker to win his assembly seat with a lead of 28,000 votes and that the district chapter of the party on Wednesday had threatened to resign in protest against his sacking.
Minister for Information tried to clear air, claiming that while sacking Khalil, the government had only referred to performance. He said that it could have been discussed inside the party. He said that under PTI, performance mattered and there was no guarantee that a person will remain a minster throughout the term without doing something.
“Forward bloc was against some people, not against me,” Khattak said, adding that a zero cannot make himself a hero.
Khattak added that if someone was not happy with his leader’s decision, then he can resign his position.
Khalil demanded that the speaker to form a committee comprising both opposition and treasury members to look into allegations against him.
The session was in progress till the filing of this report.
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Yasin Khalil is an honest and sincere person, unfortunately he has been made an escape goat to accommodate someone without realizing that has a strong support in the constituency