Caught at deep midwicket

ISLAMABAD: The high drama that had gripped the country for the last few weeks ended an hour past midnight on Sunday as the opposition’s no-trust motion against prime minister Imran Khan succeeded with 174 members in a 342-member strong house voting in favour of the motion minutes after National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser stepped down.

After the vote on the motion, Ayaz Sadiq of PML-N, who was chairing the session, announced that officially, 174 members of National Assembly have voted in favour of no-confidence motion. Sadiq did not cast his vote.

Earlier, Speaker Qaiser said he resigned in a show of his strong loyalty to his leader – Imran Khan, who had shared with him “threat letter” that the government had purportedly received from the US.

Qaiser said he would also share the ‘threat letter’ with the Chief Justice of Pakistan and the opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif.

Innings over: Imran Khan loses no-trust vote

“Today [Saturday] dated April 09, 2022 National Assembly session began at 10:30 am in accordance with the judgment of apex court. The members of the house discussed no-confidence resolution in detail and expressed their serious reservations on the foreign conspiracy,” he said.

He added: “During the session, federal cabinet has sent me an “important secret document which strengthens the views of treasury members. I’m bound by the constitution and my oath…it is my duty to protect the sovereignty of the country by sitting on this chair”.

“We have to stand up for the sovereignty and integrity of the country. Today, I decided to resign as Speaker of the National Assembly as I’ve spent a long time of life with my leader Imran Khan spanning over 26 years. I request Ayaz Sadiq to chair the house,” he said before he walked out by passing on the baton of speakership to Ayaz Sadiq, a former NA speaker.

Following the exemplary tradition set by Qaiser, the NA deputy speaker Qasim Suri followed suit by tendering resignation from his seat to show that he too is an ardent supporter of Imran Khan.

Soon after Sadiq took over, all the members of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) walked out of the house, leaving behind party’s Ali Muhammad Khan to monitor the process of voting on the motion and make a speech.

Speaking on the floor of the house after the NA session was resumed at 10:30 am sharp with NA Speaker Asad Qaiser in the chair, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi openly accused the US of “regime change” in the country through the opposition-sponsored no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Imran Khan.

The flamboyant foreign minister lambasted the opposition, as well as, the PTI dissidents. He said that some PTI lawmakers switched their loyalties for material gains.

He came down hard at the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), saying it paid no heed to the objection raised about horse trading in 2018 Senate polls, adding the PTI kept asking the ECP for a year but despite passage of whole year, it is yet to give its verdict.

He said that the blatant attempt for a regime change is no more a secret, adding the history will expose those who have run this entire drama and the pen of the historian will never forgive anyone involved in it.

Referring to the speeches of the prime minister in wake of the no-confidence issue, he reiterated it is a decisive moment in the history of the country, adding the people must decide whether they would live as a sovereign state or would remain slaves of the West.

Acknowledging that today might be his last day as foreign minister, he said that he wanted to take the house into confidence. He said that the process for the prime minister’s Russia visit was set in motion two months before it was scheduled.

He said that the prime minister proceeded with his Russia visit after consulting the country’s seasoned diplomats, academics, and some media persons, adding it was decided with mutual consultation that it would be in the country’s interest to visit Russia. He recalled that prior to the PM’s Russia visit, US national security adviser called his Pakistani counterpart with one message: “Don’t go to Russia”.

The foreign minister questioned how a sovereign state could be stopped from a bilateral visit in this manner.

He added that once the decision to go was made, Pakistan decided to give its input on the Ukraine war, adding “Pakistan is a country which strongly believes in the UN charter and self-determination and we have never supported the use of force.” “We reiterated that in the UN General Assembly,” he added. Qureshi also talked about the recently-held meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

“The Afghan issue, the Kashmir issue, and the Ukraine issue were raised...we built consensus among 57 countries of the Islamic world.”

About the threat letter which the opposition terms fake, he reiterated that the document he received from the US is authentic.

He once again invited the opposition for an in-camera briefing, if they are still doubtful about the threat letter and “let the ambassador to US tell us whether he stands by what he sent”.

“Isn’t this a threat if you’re told there will be very bad consequences if you do not desist, that Pakistan will be forgiven if the no-confidence motion is passed but will be isolated if the motion fails,” he added.

He stated that Pakistan had long-standing relations with the US, adding the government’s foreign policy called for good relations with every country including the US and to increase Pakistan’s diplomatic space.

About the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said the government felt that this was a project which would enhance regional connectivity and lift millions of people out of poverty.

He recalled how the PPP talked about the sovereignty and supremacy of the parliament, adding that he was in agreement with them. He went on to say that the deputy speaker’s ruling had the “concept of finality”, the rejection of which would open up a Pandora’s Box.

He rejected the claims that the threat letter was fake, adding that the meeting in Washington took place on March 7. He said on March 8, the no-confidence motion was submitted against the prime minister.

Turning to the opposition, he said that they had been calling for elections for the last three-and-a-half years, but why are they running away from going to the people.

However, Federal Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar claimed, while speaking on the floor of the National Assembly, a foreign conspiracy is ongoing to change the regime in Pakistan. He said that it is not the first time a conspiracy to change regime in any country has been hatched by a foreign force.

“I want to give data, for the last 124 years, one foreign force has tried to attempt 81 times to change regimes in foreign countries. From 1948, 61 times attempts were made to change regimes. Regimes were changed in the countries of the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and Latin America. Most of the attempts to change the regimes failed but in some countries they were successful. But those successful regime change operations led to civil wars and chaotic situation in a few months in those countries. I say this with regret that today an attempt is being made to change regime in Pakistan and we have proof of it. We have already submitted its proof in the meeting of the National Security Committee. The joint-opposition is involved in this conspiracy,” he claimed.

Speaking on the floor, PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari held the foreign minister responsible for the troubles faced by the prime minister.

He said that the prime minister is violating the Constitution, as well as, committing contempt of court by not implementing upon the apex court’s orders.

He said that he had warned the prime minister to be careful of his foreign minister, saying “it’s [Qureshi] this man who is behind all the troubles the prime minister is facing today”. He said that the government had lost its majority in the assembly and “there can be no debate on the foreign conspiracy for 100 days as we should go for the voting on the motion”.

Bilawal alleged that the government had told “several lies” in this whole saga. The supposed conversation took place on March 7 and the no-confidence was presented on March 8, he noted.

“But there is a time difference between Pakistan and America which means that the no-trust move was presented as the conversation was under way.”

Once again turning his guns on Qureshi, Bilawal questioned why the foreign minister was not present for the National Security Committee meeting.

He also questioned why the statement issued after the meeting did not mention the no-trust motion. “It just included a decision to issue a demarche.”

Bilawal said that if there was a conspiracy against the government, PM Imran should have taken action immediately.

He maintained that the current battle was not between the PTI, the PPP or the PDM, rather between those who upheld the Constitution and those who disregarded it.

The PPP chairman added that PM Imran was scared of fair and free elections, adding the PTI will be defeated in the same way he was defeated in the by-elections.

“The opposition wants to oust the government in a democratic way. It’s the only democratic means to dismiss the government…this house belongs to people of Pakistan,” he added.

Terming 90pc people in the PTI as turncoats, he said PM Khan had divided the house, the judiciary, the establishment, and the entire country.

In his speech, PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said that he never wanted to make personal attacks despite all the outbursts against him by his opponents.

He lamented the recent devaluation of the rupee and highlighted how the central bank had increased interest rate.

He called for voting on the motion, immediately. He said the stock market rose after the apex court issued its verdict while the value of dollar fell.

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F)’s Maulana Asad Mehmood said that the government wanted to sabotage the country’s politics, the Constitution and the parliament by using the threat letter.

Human Rights Minister Dr Shireen Mazari strongly reacted to the ECP’s statement for its inability to not hold elections till November, saying “if you could not hold polls within 90 days as defined in the Constitution, you must step down”.

She also declared the apex court’s ruling a “judicial coup”, saying the court should not interfere into the matters of the parliament.

She regretted that it is the bad luck of the nation that the US had a history of changing leaders of Pakistan, adding the opposition was invited to check the threat letter but it turned it down as it is part of that conspiracy, which clearly states that “if you will oust Imran Khan and no-confidence vote is successful, then the nation will be forgiven”.

Taking the floor shortly, the opposition leader in the NA Shehbaz Sharif declared the court verdict as historic, saying it made Pakistan’s future bright. He called on NA speaker to conduct proceedings in accordance with the SC directives, saying the parliament would be writing history today.

“Today, parliament is going to defeat a “selected” prime minister in a constitutional manner,” he declared.

Responding to Shehbaz’s earnest plea, Qaiser assured the opposition leader that he would conduct proceedings according to the law and the Constitution.

“But the important thing is that there has been talk of an international conspiracy. This should also be discussed,” he said, as the hall echoed with protests from the opposition benches.

This prompted Shehbaz to tell Qaiser that he would be violating the court’s directives if he would go down that road. He also read out the court’s directives regarding the convening of the session. “Under the court’s directives, you are bound to take up this agenda item and no other item. That is the intent of the order and you cannot deviate from it,” he said, calling on NA Speaker to hold voting on the motion, forthwith. PTI’s Asad Umar termed the apex court’s verdict against NA Speaker’s April 3 ruling “interference in parliamentary affairs” which needs to be stopped.

He was of the view that the opposition believes in democracy, so it must also believe in parliamentary supremacy and should unite with the government to make sure the supremacy should not be compromised.

He said that the NA speaker’s ruling – in which, he termed the no-confidence motion unconstitutional – may be incorrect “but are all court decisions ideal?”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022