ISLAMABAD: National Assembly is set to have its first meeting today, even though there’s a dispute over certain seats that the PTI-Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) alliance claims. President Arif Alvi agreed to start the session, after initially being hesitant, following a late-night decision.
A formal notice announced the session would commence at 10 am on Thursday. This came after the president initially refused, and the NA Secretariat had to step in and call for the session anyhow.
President Arif Alvi later approved the session, despite expressing concerns about the way the caretaker prime minister communicated the request. He hopes that the issue with the reserved seats will be resolved soon, within the legal timeframe, which is 21 days after the election.
Adding to the tensions, there was a cancellation of VIP invitations to the session over security worries. This decision follows an incident of chaos at the first meeting of the KP Assembly. NA Secretariat sources reported arguments between SIC representatives wanting invites for their followers and NA officials.
The contention stems from PTI’s dissatisfaction with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for not deciding on the allocation of over 23 reserved seats for women and minorities to the PTI bloc. All PTI assembly members, barring two, have sided with the SIC to claim these seats.
Although the National Assembly should have 266 general seats, no election happened in NA-8 Bajaur due to a candidate’s death, and several winners of multiple seats vacated their spots, leaving some vacancies.
Holding Office Elections
During today’s session, lawmaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the current speaker, will conduct the swearing-in of new members. Post the swearing-in, the assembly will adjourn.
The next order of business, scheduled for Friday, is to elect a new speaker and deputy speaker before noon. They will also take their oaths on the same day. On the session’s third day, the assembly will select a prime minister.
Shehbaz Sharif and Omar Ayub are the contenders for the prime minister position, while the speaker’s election will see Ayaz Sadiq go against Amir Dogar. For the deputy speaker’s role, PPP’s Ghulam Mustafa Shah is the joint choice of the PML-N and PPP as part of a power-sharing agreement that supports Shehbaz Sharif for the prime minister’s seat.
Another political group, including the PPP, PML-N, and others, formed after the February 8 elections. Maulana Fazlur Rehman, with four seats in the assembly, has yet to decide whether to align with the government or opposition benches.
Dispute Over Reserved Seats
The PTI’s argument for the disputed reserved seats currently lies with the ECP. The ECP has heard from involved parties but hasn’t given its decision yet. SIC’s lawyer argues that PTI-backed independents are entitled to the reserved seats since they are now part of the registered SIC.
Although SIC hasn’t given a list for these seats, their lawyer says this is a procedural matter and shouldn’t prevent the allocation of seats. The debate includes whether independents can be considered for these spots and what role they play within the SIC.
During legal discussions, the ECP expressed doubts about the list of candidates and timing, while other parties claimed that the SIC had no winners in the general seats and did not follow the proper protocol for reserved seats.
In separate news, the ECP dismissed a complaint from former PM Nawaz Sharif about the election results in NA-15 Mansehra. Additionally, the ECP has named five officials to oversee the upcoming presidential elections.
