ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) lawmakers, asked to appear before the National Assembly speaker today (Thursday) to confirm their resignations, will not be doing so, the party’s general secretary Jahangir Tareen said on Wednesday.
“We have written to the speaker…. all PTI MNAs will appear before him together to confirm their resignations,” Tareen told The Express Tribune. “To call outgoing MNAs individually to confirm their consent suggests the ruling party plans to carry out some ill-intentions,” he said.
NA Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq had assigned PTI lawmakers separate dates to appear before him and confirm they are quitting the lower house of Parliament ‘of their own free will’. According to rule 43(2) of the Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly 2007, the NA speaker must know whether a member of the house is resigning of his own accord.
MNAs Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Asad Umar and Ali Muhammad Khan had been invited to confirm their resignations today (Thursday) while Dr Arif Alvi, Dr Shireen Mazari and Munaza Hassan were asked to come in to the Speaker’s Office tomorrow (Friday).
PTI chief Imran Khan was scheduled to confirm his resignation on October 13.
Last month, all PTI lawmakers, except MNAs Gulzar Khan, Nasir Khattak and Mussarat Ahmed Zeb, sent their resignations to Ayaz Sadiq.
Speaking to a private news channel, Gulzar said differences had developed among PTI lawmakers, leading many to submit their resignations unwillingly. “This is the reason the top leadership wants the NA speaker to call them all together.”
Many in PTI voiced similar apprehensions, saying the party’s top leadership fears some lawmakers are unwilling to resign since they did not address the speaker in their resignations – an obligation under the aforementioned rules.
“If this delay tactic by PTI leadership continues, then the NA speaker may invite all chiefs of parliamentary parties to decide whether to accept resignations of PTI lawmakers or not,” a lawmaker told The Express Tribune.
Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq has already requested the speaker to not accept the resignations of PTI lawmakers.
Meanwhile, PTI senior leader Asad Umar said the party will not field candidates on seats which will fall vacant once he and other party lawmakers resign.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 25th, 2014.
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