PPP to contest Senate polls: Bilawal

KARACHI: The Pakistan People's Party has decided that all the lawmakers of the PPP will submit their resignations to the party’s leadership by December 31, 2021 (in line with the decision of the PDM) while the party also announced to take part in the upcoming Senate elections.

The announcements to this effect were made by PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday night while addressing a press conference after chairing a marathon meeting of the Central Executive Committee here at the Bilawal House. The CEC’s meeting continued for over five hours.

The CEC of the PPP also put forth the suggestion to table no-confidence motions in the National and Punjab assemblies to get rid of the federal and provincial governments of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. The PPP chairman said on the occasion that overthrowing the present 'selected and puppet regime' was a major challenge before them.

He said that every political tactic would be used to remove the government of PTI as contesting the Senate polls was one such tactic.

He said that no dialogue could be held with the government before the resignation of Prime Minister Imran Khan. He said that they had been giving the deadline of January 31st for the dismissal of PTI government as the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) would decide the timing of resigning from the assemblies by the opposition legislators.

He said the incumbent 'puppet PM' had to be sent home as they had given the deadline of January 31 to the PM to step down. He said the role of establishment in politics and governance should come to an end.

He said the CEC of PPP was of the opinion that the present government should be challenged at every forum. The selected regime would be challenged in the streets and also in the courts. He said that the present government would also be challenged in the upcoming Senate polls.

He said that they would present the opinion of his party before the PDM. The PDM would also be informed about the CEC’s decision to contest the Senate polls.

Bilawal said as such there was no clash in the decision of his party to contest the Senate elections and the aim to get rid of the incumbent PM. He said the PDM could secure majority seats in the upcoming Senate polls if it contested the elections collectively. He said that resignations of the party’s lawmakers were like a nuclear weapon that would be very carefully used. To a question whether the PPP has made conditional its decision to resign from the assemblies to Nawaz Sharif’s return to Pakistan, Bilawal said that members of the CEC had individually expressed their opinion in the meeting and neither he could confirm nor deny any such assertion as he had been briefing the media about the decisions taken in the meeting.

He said the CEC of the PPP had also discussed the issue of population census as the provinces had objected to the census results. He said that his party would contact the allies of the present government that had objections against the census results in order to secure the peoples’ rights in this regard.

The PPP chairman said the CEC meeting had also condemned 'rigging' in recent elections in Gilgit-Baltistan. He said the CEC had also endorsed the action plan of the PDM against the present government of PTI. The PPP would contact different sections of the society and organisations that had been upset due to the present government. He said the CEC also condemned the retrenchment of workers of the Pakistan Steel Mills and also transfer of employees of PIA from Karachi to Islamabad.

He said the CEC meeting also condemned the arrest of the leader of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) Khawaja Asif while terming it a move to further the process of political vengeance against the spirit of democracy.

Asim Yasin adds from Islamabad: The PPP Central Executive Committee meeting has decided that the PPP will contest the Senate elections to protect the 18th Amendment and the National Finance Commission Award.

According to PPP insiders, during the Central Executive Committee meeting, the constitutional and legal experts advised the leadership that if the party resigns from the assemblies before the Senate elections, then they must be prepared for the rollback of the 18th Amendment as their resignations could not stop the Senate elections from being held.

The PPP’s constitutional and legal experts categorically told the CEC that their resignations can in no way block the Senate elections but it will pave the way for the government to amend all the democratic provisions by distorting the 1973 Constitution revived after 18th the Amendment. The sources said there was a complete consensus within the CEC for using and exploring all the constitutional and legal options against the government. It was decided that the PPP during the upcoming meeting of the Pakistan Democratic Movement will strongly advocate for contesting the Senate elections from the platform of the combined opposition to challenge the government in the upper house of parliament that represents the Federation.

The CEC also discussed removing the name of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbassi from the ECL and the meeting between PML-F leader Muhammad Ali Durrani and the jailed President of PML-N Shahbaz Sharif. Sources said the PPP members expressed their annoyance over the absence of Maulana Fazlur Rehman from PDM’s public meeting on the eve of 13th martyrdom anniversary of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed and said that Rehman skipped the rally on the pressure of the Larkana chapter of JUI-F. According to sources in knowledge of the CEC proceedings, some PPP members expressed disappointment that the PDM Lahore rally could not generate strong enough interest among the residents of Lahore who failed to turn up for the rally despite the city being the home turf of the PML-N.