NA Speaker accepts Shahbaz’s resignation as PAC Chairman

ISLAMABAD: Speaker National Assembly (NA) Asad Qaiser Wednesday approved the resignation of Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shahbaz Sharif as a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairman and summoned the session of the PAC on November 28 to elect its new chairman.

Opposition leader in the National Assembly and President PML-N Shahbaz Sharif has sent his resignation to Speaker National Assembly who has accepted it which would be effective from Wednesday November 20.

NA Speaker has summoned the meeting of the PAC on November 28, according to Section 225 (1) of the Rules, Procedures of conduct of the business in the National Assembly, 2007.

With the acceptance of the resignation of Shahbaz Sharif as the PAC chairman, a debate has been triggered that who will be a new PAC chairman either from the government or opposition.

It is to be mentioned here that Shahbaz Sharif has decided to resign from the chairmanship of the PAC in May this year and it was announced through the press statement by the PML-N.

The PML-N has nominated Rana Tanveer Hussain in place of Shahbaz Sharif as a PAC chairman but the question still be debated whether the government will accept the PML-N nomination or will bring its own candidate for the post. As there was precedent of the past when Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has tendered his resignation as a PAC chairman during the PPP tenure then the PPP government instead of giving the chairmanship of the PAC to then opposition bring its own man—Nadeem Afzal Gondal—as a PAC chairman who headed the parliamentary accountability forum till the expiry of the tenure of the National Assembly in 2013.

Though the meetings of the Sub-committee of the PAC were being held yet the meeting of the main PAC was not held since February and so far till only three meetings of the main PAC were held in last one an half year of the parliamentary year.