ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-Insaf (PTI) on Monday decided to resign en masse from the National Assembly and boycott the new prime minister of Pakistan election, said Fawad Chaudhry after a parliamentary meeting of the party on Monday.
In a video message after the meeting, the former information minister said PTI Chairman Imran Khan has decided that the PTI would not legitimise this foreign-funded regime change in Pakistan by taking part in the election of the premier.
پاکستان تحریک انصاف کی پارلیمانی کمیٹی نے قومی اسمبلی سے مستعفیٰ ہونے کا فیصلہ کیا ہے، آج تمام اراکین اسمبلی اپنا استعفیٰ اسپیکر کو دے رہے ہیں اس کے ساتھ ہم نے غیر ملکی ایجنڈے پر ہونیوالے مقصود چپڑاسی کے نام نہاد انتخاب کا بھی حصہ بننے سے انکار کر دیا ہے۔۔۔ہم آزادی کیلئے لڑیں گے
— Ch Fawad Hussain (@fawadchaudhry) April 11, 2022
“The parliamentary meeting of the PTI gave Imran the complete authority to make decisions on the lawmakers’ behalf.” Fawad said as per the directions of Imran no PTI lawmaker will vote in the election for the PM and after that, the PTI MNAs will also send their resignations to the National Assembly speaker.
Sources privy to the matter quoted Khan as saying: “We will not sit in this Assembly under any circumstances.” He said that PTI will not sit in the Assembly with the people who have robbed Pakistan and who have been “imported by foreign forces”.
“We have made this decision to keep the institutions under pressure who want this government to run the country […] we will not let them continue.”
However, sources said that most of the parliamentary party members opposed Khan’s decision to tender resignations, and instead, advised that they should not leave the field empty and face the Opposition strongly at every front.
At this, Khan said if none of the parliamentarians resign, he “will be the first member to resign from the assembly.” After this, all the members consented to the decision, saying that Khan has the authority to order them to resign.
So far, Farrukh Habib, Ali Zaidi, Murad Saeed, Shireen Mazari, Shafqat Mahmood and Ali Amin Gandapur’s resignations have come to the fore.
قومی اسمبلی کی رکنیت سے بطور احتجاج #امپورٹڈ_حکومت_نامنظور کیخلاف مستفی ہونے کا فیصلہ کیا ہے۔ یہ قومی اسمبلی کی نشست عمران خان کی امانت ہے جو فیصل آباد کے میرے حلقہ کے لوگوں نے 2018 میں میرے سپرد کی تھی۔
پاکستان کی سالمیت،خودمختاری اور قومی غیرت کے لیے ایسی ہزاروں نشستیں قربان۔ pic.twitter.com/uV5jepc9yH— Farrukh Habib (@FarrukhHabibISF) April 11, 2022
Submitted my resignation from NA to Chairman @ImranKhanPTI
No way we should legitimise this foreign funded regime change in Pakistan.
The battle for the sovereignty of Pakistan will now be decided on the streets by the people, not the these looters. #امپورٹڈ_گورنمنٹ_نامنظور pic.twitter.com/wdhtqauOje— Ali Haider Zaidi (@AliHZaidiPTI) April 11, 2022
جن کی حرصِ زر، ہوس اقتدار نے میری قوم کو “بھکاری” بنایا۔ جن کی غلامانہ زہنیت نے میرے گھروں کو مقتل گاہ، میرے لوگوں کو پناہگزین میری ماں کو زندہ درگور کردیا میں ان کو اس ملک کا سربراہ مانوں؟ absolutely not یہ فیصلہ فقط میرا نہیں میرے ملک کی ۲۲ کروڑ عوام کا بھی ہے pic.twitter.com/Mqln6tfVGe
— Murad Saeed (@MuradSaeedPTI) April 11, 2022
Election for PM
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi were likely to face off each other in the election for the new prime minister in the National Assembly.
The election for the prime minister or the leader of the house was triggered after the passage of the no-confidence motion moved by the opposition against then prime minister Imran Khan. The motion was passed after 174 National Assembly members voted in favour.
The joint opposition had fielded Shehbaz as its candidate for the post of prime minister, while the PTI had decided to field Qureshi, who served as the country’s foreign minister in Imran Khan’s cabinet. The winning candidate must get at least 172 votes in the 342-strong house.
The nomination papers for the post of prime minister were received and scrutinised by the National Assembly Secretariat on Sunday. Both Shehbaz and Qureshi filed their papers along with their respective party members of the National Assembly.
