PM dares PDM to mount no-trust bid against him

Ag Agencies

SIALKOT/ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has challenged the opposition to bring a no-confidence motion against him in Parliament, stating that is the constitutional way to send a government packing as the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) continued to brandish its threat of resigning from assemblies — saying a strategy for the move was under discussion.

“The constitutional way to send a government packing is a no-confidence motion,” Prime Minister Khan said in a conversation with reporters in Sialkot, after he inaugurated an airline, Air Sial, and announced a series of packages for the city on Wednesday. “If the opposition wants to present a no-confidence motion, they should come to the Assembly,” the Prime Minister added.

His discussion came amid a flurry of talks among the PDM leadership, who met for a second day in Islamabad to thrash out the details of their next moves — in particular their threats to resign from the assemblies — ahead of the 11-party alliance’s power show in Lahore this Sunday.

Referring to that possibility, the Prime Minister said if the opposition were to go ahead and quit the assemblies, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) would end up “stronger” after the by-elections. “I do not understand what they want to do,” he added.

He also said he had “never backed down from national dialogue” and said Parliament was the “best place for political dialogue”. “I had said on the first day that I was ready to answer all the questions in Parliament,” the Prime Minister added. “Democracy will only work when there is dialogue.”

The Prime Minister once again said he was willing to discuss everything except for “NRO”-like concessions. “We have no problem. We are ready to discuss every issue,” he said, adding: “We will not talk about NRO under any circumstances. We cannot forgive corruption cases.”

The Premier also dismissed the PDM’s promises of a big rally in Lahore on December 13. “These 11 parties combined cannot hold a meeting as big as the PTI,” the Premier said.

Earlier, Khan criticised the opposition’s forging ahead with plans for the Lahore rally, saying those who called for complete lockdowns in the first coronavirus wave were going around and holding public rallies themselves.

Meanwhile in Islamabad, PDM President Maulana Fazlur Rehman said elections for the Senate would be “fake” if they were conducted through the current provincial and national assemblies. “Breaking the Senate electoral college is part of our democratic and constitutional struggle. We are working on a strategy for this and are [consulting] with constitutional experts,” he said at a press conference where he was flanked by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz.

PML-N Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal, PPP Parliamentary Leader in the Senate Sherry Rehman and Nabeel Gabol were also present.

Maulana Fazl said PDM’s next public meeting in Lahore on December 13 will be held “at any cost” even if the Punjab government turns the Minar-e-Pakistan venue “into a dam”. A day earlier, Maryam had alleged in a tweet that the ruling party was trying to hamper the rally by flooding the venue.

“People from all over will come for the rally and December 13 will be a historic day,” Fazl said, adding that if the government “closed one door, the opposition would find another”.

He said the PDM’s steering committee were to meet later in the day to decide the schedule for different rallies and strikes as well as the long march to Islamabad. “We will keep talking about resignations and decide the strategy for when it is best throw them in their faces,” he said. When he spoke, the PPP chairman said the 11-party opposition alliance was “on one page when it came to sending the government home”.

Responding to a question regarding the resignation of opposition lawmakers, and considering the PPP is in power in Sindh, Bilawal said: “We had announced our struggle during the All-Parties Conference and had said we will carry out rallies, protests and use all democratic and parliamentary options which includes resignations.

“This is in before you and we are taking that forward. We will use every weapon necessary to send the current government packing and Pakistani masses are with us to send the government packing.” Maryam Nawaz said all the parties were united and would submit their resignations to the PDM leadership. “Yesterday Maulana Sahib represented all of us and it is our joint decision to hand in resignations.” The PML-N vice president, in response to a question regarding past government projects which the current government was inaugurating, said: “They have no projects for us to lay claim to. Which projects of theirs will we ever be able to take over?”