KP Assembly passes resolution against PM amid rumpus

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Assembly on Tuesday passed a resolution against the prime minister amid rumpus and shouting of ‘Go Nawaz Go’ and ‘Go Imran Go’ slogans.

The opposition lawmakers encircled the speaker’s dais just after he put to vote the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission (second amendment) Bill, 2017. The treasury and opposition lawmakers vociferously chanted slogans against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan.

The opposition members were protesting over further amendments in the bill proposed by the government. They were also protesting that an amendment proposed by the former provincial minister Ziaullah Afridi, who has been expelled from the PTI, wasn’t being allowed. The main amendment to the Ehtesab Commission Bill suggested shifting the powers of the legislative committee and search and scrutiny committee to select the director general (DG) of the Ehtesab Commission to the administrative committee of the Peshawar High Court (PHC).

The House passed with majority of 62/20 the amendment presented by PTI’s Arif Yousaf, special assistant to the chief minister on law. Lawmakers from the Awami National Party (ANP) and other opposition parties wanted to speak on the issue as they said that Ziaullah Afridi’s amendment should also be accommodated, but the treasury rejected it. The opposition members encircled the speaker’s dais accusing Deputy Speaker Dr Mehr Taj Roghani, who was presiding the session, of siding with the government and compromising her impartiality as custodian of the House.

The women legislators from the treasury bench also started shouting of ‘Go Nawaz Go’ slogans. The opposition lawmakers retaliated with slogans of ‘Go Imran Go’. Amid shouting of slogans, PTI’s Dr Haider Ali from Swat presented the resolution asking Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to step down. The resolution said since the Supreme Court in its verdict in the Panama Papers case had ordered formation of the joint investigation team (JIT), it wasn’t possible to hold fair and transparent investigations against the prime minister as long as he was in power. 

The resolution demanded the prime minister to resign to pave the way for transparent investigations. The resolution was passed with majority amid uproar as the House presented the look of a fish market.

Earlier, the speaker suspended the questions hour and other agenda item of the assembly to facilitate the passage of the Ehtesab Commission Bill. Speaking on the bill, Ziaullah Afridi said the ‘corrupt’ commissioners of the Ehtesab Commission defamed the government as well as the PTI as they were appointed in violation of merit. He alleged that all the five commissioners were involved in corruption and the director general they selected was also an undeserving person. He criticised former director general of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission Lt Gen (R) Hamid Khan for his statement that he had not initiated any investigations against the chief minister. Ziaullah Afridi said the former director general had retreated from his earlier stance and the press statements that he had made in the past.

Minister for Public Health Engineering Shah Farman defended the government by saying the opposition should have read the bill and suggested amendments. He said the new amendment was aimed at bringing transparency to the accountability body. The minister said that now the director general of the Ehtesab Commission would be selected by the high court and the government would have no influence over it.

He congratulated the chief minister, saying the former director general of Ehtesab Commission had clarified that there were no investigations against him. The speaker adjourned the session till Friday amid sloganeering by the government and opposition members against each other.