The scenes that played out at the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday were extremely unfortunate, as the premises were sealed with barbed wires installed atop its boundary walls and the building’s main gate locked. These developments came about over a confusion over the scheduling of a crucial session for the election of the province’s new chief minister.
Earlier, the Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari had said that the session would take place on April 16 due to some repair work that had to be carried out in the Punjab Assembly as a result of “commotion”. This order was retracted on Tuesday night as the Deputy Speaker announced that the voting session would take place on Wednesday night at 7:30 pm, in accordance with the guidelines of the Supreme Court.
The spokesperson of the provincial assembly and PML-Q, Chaudhry Pervez Elahi denied this announcement regarding the session and the PTI along with the PML-Q filed a no-confidence motion against the Deputy Speaker, claiming that Mr Mazari had lost the confidence of the majority of the house and that the provincial assembly proceedings were not being carried out according to the Constitution.
It is quite evident that the PTI and PML-Q are resorting to stalling tactics as they seek to avoid a loss in the voting session. The Deputy Speaker has stated that the session was being scheduled on Wednesday in line with directions of the Supreme Court and that he will continue to play his constitutional role in the election for the province’s new chief minister. Also, reports of the Deputy Speaker’s staff being harassed and pressurised are extremely concerning as it proves that there are no boundaries of decency at this point in time.
The two sides are now operating in parallel with their own set of rules in what appears to be a state of anarchy. Arguing that the Deputy Speaker can conduct the house despite the no-trust motion, the voting session went ahead in Faletti’s hotel on Wednesday night. Similar to when Mr Ayaz Sadiq took to the speaker’s chair in the National Assembly to count the votes for the no-trust motion against Imran Khan, this exercise was purely symbolic and devoid of any meaning as the session was not approved by the Civil Secretariat.
The tactics adopted by the PTI and PML-Q coalition are hard to grasp. At this point, the strategy looks to be that if PTI cannot govern, no one else gets to either. Not only does this illustrate how desperate the newly formed coalition finds itself, but it also speaks to the complete disregard for the crisis the country is undergoing currently. Such entitled behaviour motivated by sheer self-interest is holding the country hostage. Under no circumstances could one justify the deployment of armed police alongside water cannons and Rescue 1122 vehicles outside the assembly’s building. This state of chaos cannot be allowed to continue and deliberate attempts to delay the process in Punjab must end.
Earlier, the Deputy Speaker Sardar Dost Muhammad Mazari had said that the session would take place on April 16 due to some repair work that had to be carried out in the Punjab Assembly as a result of “commotion”. This order was retracted on Tuesday night as the Deputy Speaker announced that the voting session would take place on Wednesday night at 7:30 pm, in accordance with the guidelines of the Supreme Court.
The spokesperson of the provincial assembly and PML-Q, Chaudhry Pervez Elahi denied this announcement regarding the session and the PTI along with the PML-Q filed a no-confidence motion against the Deputy Speaker, claiming that Mr Mazari had lost the confidence of the majority of the house and that the provincial assembly proceedings were not being carried out according to the Constitution.
It is quite evident that the PTI and PML-Q are resorting to stalling tactics as they seek to avoid a loss in the voting session. The Deputy Speaker has stated that the session was being scheduled on Wednesday in line with directions of the Supreme Court and that he will continue to play his constitutional role in the election for the province’s new chief minister. Also, reports of the Deputy Speaker’s staff being harassed and pressurised are extremely concerning as it proves that there are no boundaries of decency at this point in time.
The two sides are now operating in parallel with their own set of rules in what appears to be a state of anarchy. Arguing that the Deputy Speaker can conduct the house despite the no-trust motion, the voting session went ahead in Faletti’s hotel on Wednesday night. Similar to when Mr Ayaz Sadiq took to the speaker’s chair in the National Assembly to count the votes for the no-trust motion against Imran Khan, this exercise was purely symbolic and devoid of any meaning as the session was not approved by the Civil Secretariat.
The tactics adopted by the PTI and PML-Q coalition are hard to grasp. At this point, the strategy looks to be that if PTI cannot govern, no one else gets to either. Not only does this illustrate how desperate the newly formed coalition finds itself, but it also speaks to the complete disregard for the crisis the country is undergoing currently. Such entitled behaviour motivated by sheer self-interest is holding the country hostage. Under no circumstances could one justify the deployment of armed police alongside water cannons and Rescue 1122 vehicles outside the assembly’s building. This state of chaos cannot be allowed to continue and deliberate attempts to delay the process in Punjab must end.
