Govt allies attended NA session on ‘phone calls’: Khaqan

ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister and senior PMLN leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi Friday claimed that the government managed to complete its required strength in the National Assembly for supplementary bill passage session through telephone calls.

Addressing a news conference here on Friday, he said the members of government ally parties told them (the opposition) that they did not want to attend the proceedings of the House, but were forced to come.

He said the opposition wanted detailed discussion on the important legislation like the State Bank (Amendment) Bill. He told the government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that the Finance (Supplementary) Bill, 2021 and the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill, 2022 would be reversed in future. “Particularly the State Bank of Pakistan (Amendment) Bill amounts to compromising country’s sovereignty,” Khaqan Abbasi added.

PMLN Secretary General Ahsan Iqbal, former finance minister Miftah Ismail and Khurram Dastgir Khan were also present. “We are mortgaging our country’s sovereignty to receive loan of Rs180 billion from the IMF. Will any country of the world will do so,” he asked.

He said that could not be done by those who were elected representatives rather by those selected who came to power through election theft.