National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. PHOTO: FACEBOOK
ISLAMABAD:
The process of appointing the Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly is set to begin in the next parliamentary session scheduled for January 12, NA Chairman Sardar Ayaz Sadiq told PTI Chief Whip Amir Dogar during a meeting on Monday.
According to a statement from the National Assembly secretariat, the meeting focused on the procedure for appointing the opposition leader.
Dogar presented the speaker with a certified copy of the Peshawar High Court’s (PHC) dismissal of the petition filed by former opposition leader Omar Ayub and urged that the appointment process be expedited.
He stressed that the PTI had withdrawn all pending legal cases relating to the seat of the Leader of the Opposition, paving the way for a fresh start. He said with legal hurdles cleared; there was now no obstacle to the appointment of the Leader of the Opposition.
The statement further said that Speaker Ayaz Sadiq assured that the process would be conducted strictly in accordance with the law and the constitution and that he would brief the house on the matter in the upcoming session.
“The process for the appointment of the leader of the opposition will be initiated anew,” he added, emphasizing that the National Assembly’s rules for the position are clear.
An official handout from the speaker’s office noted that four letters had earlier been sent to PTI seeking clarification on issues related to the appointment.
The Secretariat confirmed that the constitutional process would continue in the upcoming session after verification of the opposition members’ signatures, ensuring that all procedural requirements are met.
The latest development has ended months of uncertainty over the opposition leader’s post, which fell vacant in August 2025 when Pakistan’s Election Commission disqualified Omar Ayub following his conviction in cases related to the May 9 riots.
Imran Khan nominated Mahmood Khan Achakzai, leader of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and leader of the Grand Opposition Alliance, as a candidate, and the PTI formally requested his appointment in October 2025.
The delay was largely due to pending legal petitions filed by Ayub challenging his disqualification and related procedural issues.
Although he withdrew his Supreme Court petition in October, some cases remained pending before the PHC. The speaker’s office cited these as reasons for not issuing Achakzai’s formal announcement and repeatedly informed opposition delegations that the matter was sub judice.
In a recent letter to Dogar, the NA Secretariat noted that although the opposition had stated in Parliament that Ayub’s cases were no longer sub judice, this had not been communicated in writing.
The Secretariat requested confirmation of the current status of cases where it was a party to complete the “prescribed process” to declare the Leader of the Opposition.
With these legal and procedural hurdles now cleared, PTI’s nominee Mahmood Khan Achakzai is set to assume the post once the process formally begins.
