PMLN senator says induction of ‘independent’ senators, including Naqvi, continuation of hybrid regime

ISLAMABAD: PMLN Senator Afnan Ullah Khan has spoken out against electing independent candidates as senators — including Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi — and called it a “continuation of the hybrid system”.

In an interview with a private TV channel on Friday, the senator said, “Making independent members senators is a continuation of the hybrid system of 2017.”

“In my opinion, if we had got a simple majority the situation would have been vastly different,” he said, adding that the situation would have headed towards the direction of the question posed by the host regarding the accountability of retired generals Qamar Javed Bajwa and Faiz Hameed.

“Because this is a weak government, we have the option of either solving people’s problems or creating chaos,” he stated. “And given the economic situation, we think its more important to provide relief to the people.”

However, he added that those who took the unconstitutional route — or “try to deface the Constitution” — will be held accountable “sooner or later”.

“Whether its Mohsin Naqvi sahib or Faisal Vawda sahib, these aren’t our people,” he said, adding despite voting for Naqvi that it was one of the “fruits” of the 2017 hybrid system.

“One is inside the Adiala jail right now and the other is this,” he said. “And this can’t be turned overnight, it will have to be controlled slowly.”

While answering the question of an alleged hybrid system in place, he rhetorically asked, “How else can an independent become a senator in this system?”

The senator said that there was a system already running in the country, however it was not the system they’ve put in place — they’ve “come under the belly of this hybrid system”.

When asked what would have happened if PMLN had not supported the independents, the senator said that the economic situation would have gotten worse and “chaos would have spread”.

“I can assure you that more than 90 per cent of my party was against the decision, however Mian Nawaz Sharif decided so,” he said about forming a government after the Feb 8 polls.