Islamabad:
Legislators from the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-E-Insaf (PTI) completed the presidency of several state assembly committees on Wednesday and completed the directives of the PTI leadership, party officers said.
In a speech with the media, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) confirmed chairman Junaid Akbar that he had retired after directives from the party leadership. “Implementation of the party’s management directives is a collective responsibility for all members,” he said.
PTI information secretary Sheikh Waqa’s Acram also retired from the PAC and the Information Committee. “After the instructions from our manager Imran Khan, I submitted my resignation this morning from the Committee on Public Accounts and the Information Committee,” he said at X.
PTI’s headspice in the National Assembly, Malik Amir Dogar, confirmed that the PTI members of the standing committees had begun to submit their resignation following the directives of the party’s founder Imran Khan.
He mentioned that the PTI commander had assigned the positions to the party members of the parliamentary committees, and his instructions would be followed in letter and spirit. “PTI’s parliamentary team stands by the decisions of the party leadership and will continue to follow the instructions from the top.”
In addition, PTI leaders presented Faisal Amin and Ali Asghar their resignation from their positions in the National Assembly’s standing committee. Their formal resignation has been submitted to the National Assembly Secretariat.
Asghar has stepped down from the standing committees on the Cabinet Secretariat, Privatization and Planning and Development, while Amin retired from the standing committees on financial affairs and national food security.
Currently, PTI has representation in 29 standing committees, and its member chairman eight of these committees. PTI’s panel member of PAC, Sanaullah Mastichel confirmed that the PTI members should resign from all parliamentary committees.
Formerly, all PTI members Boikoted Wednesday’s Session of PAC, except PTI senator Mohsin Aziz, who attended the meeting via video link, but left midway in protest. During the session, the committee secretary expressed concern about Akbar’s absence.
A day earlier, Imran Khan had instructed the party not to participate in upcoming elections. He also advised the parliamentary members to resign all committees and referred the matter to the party’s political committee for final consultation.
The instructions were forwarded after a meeting in Adiala prison with his sisters, Aleema Khan and Uzma Khan, as well as senior party leaders Barriste Gohar Ali Khan, Salman Akram Raja and Barrister Ali Zafar.
In line with instructions from the party’s basic chairman, PTI’s political committee, after extensive considerations at a meeting, unanimously approved the boycott and decided that the party’s lawmakers in the National Assembly would resign.
According to party sources, the meeting was called to map PTI’s election strategy in the wake of the recent disqualifications that have created vacancies for national and provincial assembly. Members were explicitly asked to give their views on whether the party should contest the election.
The proposal to boycott was unanimously approved with senior leaders, including Sanaullah Masti Khel, Barrister Gohar, Sheikh Waqas Akram and Amir Dogar, supporting strongly the move and calls it in accordance with the guidance of Imran Khan.
