Sindh House. Photo courtesy Ch. Sultan Buttar
Nearly a dozen MNAs claim to journalists they are staying of their own free will and want guarantees of safety before returning to Parliament Lodges
The opposition’s repeated hints at having secured the support of several lawmakers of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) proved true on Thursday after nearly a dozen MNAs met with journalists at Sindh House in Islamabad and confirmed that they would participate in the no-confidence resolution against Prime Minister Imran Khan against their party’s directions to sit out the session.
A day earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan and some members of his federal cabinet had alleged that the opposition was “bribing” the ruling party’s MNAs and “hiding” several of them at Sindh House, which they claimed was filled with “bags of money.” While the opposition had earlier claimed that the MNAs residing at Sindh House were from their own parties, the press conference on Thursday proved otherwise.
Footage broadcast on all major TV channels in Pakistan showed PTI MNAs—most of whom joined the party shortly before the 2018 general elections—living in relative comfort at the Sindh House. Speaking with journalists, they stressed that they were staying at the facility of their own will for “safety,” as they had been threatened by the ruling party when they were residing at the Parliament Lodges. All of the MNAs interview rejected the government’s allegations of having been paid to switch their allegiances and said that they would vote on the no-confidence motion according to their “conscience.”
Among the most prominent MNAs interview by various media outlets were Raja Riaz and Nawab Sher Waseer of Faisalabad; Noor Alam Khan of Peshawar; minority lawmaker Ramesh Kumar Vankwani; Nuzhat Pathan and parliamentary secretary for education Wajiha Qamar.
Riaz, who is also a member of a Jahangir Tareen-led dissident faction of the PTI, told media that 24 PTI members were staying at Sindh House, while Noor Alam Khan put the number of dissidents over 24. Vankwani later claimed that more than 30 PTI lawmakers, including three federal ministers, had decided against supporting the prime minister on the no-confidence motion.
To a question, Riaz said he was ready to shift back to Parliament Lodges if the prime minister could guarantee that there would be no repeat of the police action from last week that had resulted in several opposition MNAs being arrested. Meanwhile, Noor Alam Khan emphasized that there had been no bribery and regretted that the government was creating the impression that the dissident lawmakers’ votes had been bought.
Nawab Sher Waseer, meanwhile, told a private broadcaster overnight that he had been disillusioned by the abusive language used by the prime minister and his supporters and had no desire to continue with the PTI. He also rubbished the impression that he, or any other dissident MNA, were being ‘forcibly’ detained at Sindh House.
Security of MNAs
Sindh House is currently under the protection of the Special Security Unit of Sindh police. In a posting on Twitter, Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari alleged that the dissidents had been threatened with violence, arrests and other “consequences” if they attended the National Assembly during voting on the no-confidence resolution. “Their lives, liberty and family are under threat. MNAs will take any and all means for their own protection against this fascist regime. The PPP and PDM will do all we can to protect them. We will not show all our cards now … More to come in the coming days. Out of respect of the OIC conference, we don’t want anarchy in Islamabad,” he added.
In a subsequent press conference, Opposition Leader in the Senate Yousaf Raza Gilani said the PPP had not kidnapped any members, nor it was involved in horse-trading. He reiterated claims that the PTI lawmakers had sought residence at Sindh House for their own protection.