Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is currently addressing the federal cabinet in Islamabad today.
The premier’s address comes hours after he held an important meeting with coalition partners to discuss the possibility of talks with the opposition PTI and the date of the Punjab polls set by the top court.
The meeting was attended by JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Foreign Minister, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and other important members of the federal coalition.
At the outset of his speech, PM Shehbaz said that the situation was very challenging today.
“The matter, challenges and situation today were brought up in the Parliament and measures were taken. The National Assembly and joint house dealt with these challenges … constitutional and legal measures were also taken regarding the matters of the Supreme Court,” he highlighted.
The premier recalled that the April 4 decision of a three-member bench of the apex court in the Punjab elections delay case had been rejected by the Parliament.
He asserted that the federal government’s stance was the same even today, saying that the coalition backed the SC’s 4-3 verdict.
“But the SC is still trying to take things forward with the same three-member bench,” PM Shehbaz said. “And this is why we have gathered here today, to reiterate our decision.”
Earlier, he went on to say, decisions issued by the SC were dealt with by the Parliament and expressed that the same should be done now as well.
“This is our moral and political responsibility to respect the decisions taken by the parliament previously,” the PM stated, adding that it was important to bring forth these matters in the public.
Referring to the SC’s direction to the government and opposition regarding talks, he said that the apex court’s “job is not arbitration, but their job is to give orders as per the Constitution and law”.
“Hence, decisions regarding whether elections should be held and if they should be held on one day … regarding this there is complete unity in the allied parties … on Aug 13 the assembly will complete its term and whatever date comes after 90 days.”
PM Shehbaz contended that it was important to tell the public that the PTI, instead of helping the government solve the current challenges, exploited the situation.
But, he continued, everyone from the finance minister to the foreign minister combined efforts to defeat the crisis, adding that Pakistan’s situation had considerably improved today.
The premier stated that “all-out efforts were made to spread anarchy in the country and create division in the society”.
“Even the Pakistan Army and its leadership were not spared in this. Some PTI agents outside Pakistan, who are enemies of the country, they played a role that even an enemy won’t play … they issued such statements and tweets,” he claimed.
The PM said that there was an “overwhelming” opinion that “the doors of dialogue should not be closed” but highlighted that its format was yet to be decided.
“There is also an opinion that we can convey our stance to them [the opposition] via the National Assembly speaker and then a parliamentary committee can take up the matter so that the nation can know that this allied government has made its all-out efforts to ensure everyone unites on one-day polls,” he said, adding that the federal coalition never made anything a matter of ego, unlike the PTI.
Impasse on elections
The development comes in the backdrop of an impasse regarding elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab — where the provincial assemblies were dissolved earlier this year. While the PTI has been adamant about holding polls in the provincial legislatures, the government maintains its stance on holding polls across the country on the same day.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court (SC) — while hearing a PTI petition — had directed the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to hold general elections to the Punjab Assembly on May 14. However, the government had rejected the apex court’s orders.
After repeated back and forth last week, the SC on Thursday afforded a temporary respite to the country’s main political parties, giving them time till April 26 to develop a consensus on the date for elections to the provincial and national assemblies, so they could be held simultaneously across the country. The apex court will resume the hearing tomorrow (April 27).
