PM Shehbaz once again invites the opposition to sit with the govt to sort out the issues
ISLAMABAD, June 26 (SABAH): Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has once again invited the opposition to sit with the government to sort out the issues and take the country forward on the path of development.
Responding to the points raised by Ali Muhammad Khan on cut motions in the National Assembly on Wednesday, PM Shehbaz Sharif regretted that his repeated offers for the Charter of Economy following the 2018 elections were never responded in a positive manner.
The Prime Minister lamented the bitterness in politics and questioned who is responsible for it. Alluding to the excesses meted out to his family and the party leaders in the past, the Prime Minister said he does not want happening the same to the opposition. He emphasized that justice should always prevail.
“If their [PTI] founder is facing troubles [in jail], then I reiterate: come, let’s sit down and talk,” said the premier. The premier said that there was a time in this house when politicians would severely criticise one another, but they would also stand with their rivals during times of happiness and sorrow.
Speaking about the 2018 elections, the prime minister said: “We joined the parliament despite the [rigged] polls. The sort of slogans that were raised during my first speech will always be remembered as a dark chapter in the history books.”
“If someone is facing any injustice, then I believe that the scales of justice should be in favour of those [being victimised], there is no difference over it — whether it be any politician or anyone from any walk of life.”
The PM lamented that he had once again, while he was in the opposition, proposed Imran Khan to sit on the talking table but such slogans were raised again. “So who is responsible for this bitterness [between politicians]. We don’t even shake hands now,” he expressed.
He also mentioned how Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif and PML-N Punjab President Rana Sanaullah Khan were treated during their time in jail.
In response to the prime minister’s comments, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub Khan reiterated that the PTI would talk with the “Form-47” government once its founder and other incarcerated workers and leaders were out of jail.
“This should be in your minds: you torture our workers, you’ve kept our lady workers in prison vans at 45°C. My prime minister Imran Khan was kept in a death cell, there’s an oven-like environment over there,” he said, amid sloganeering from the treasury benches.
While there was a ruckus, Ayub said that the house’s proceedings could only continue if the government members respected their opposition colleagues.
To the premier’s request for talks, he said: “Reconciliation will take place when you realise the abuse of Yasmin Rashid, Mehmood ur Rasheed, and Hasan Niazi.”
As the premier said that he faced the worst conditions, Ayub claimed that when former premier Nawaz Sharif was in prison, he had air conditioners installed in his jail cell.