Daily Times

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Syed Khursheed Shah has said that if all “chaotic politicians” are sent into space the government benches in the National Assembly will be vacant.

Shah was responding to Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry Monday’s statement wherein he spoke about sending “chaotic politicians” into space while speaking about Pakistan space mission.

“There are some politicians who are creating chaos on ground and should be sent to space,” Chaudhry had said in his statement on Monday. “Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) had asked for five years data to send them to space. I request that instead of five years they should ask for the last three, four months.” Pointing towards government benches, Shah said: “We are not chaotic… we are peace-loving people who do not call for strikes.”

Chaired by NA Deputy Speaker Qasim Suri, the sitting began with a speech by senior PPP leader Khursheed Shah. The PPP stalwart maintained that whatever happened in the assembly on Monday was unpleasant. “We don’t want to create unrest in the assembly,” he said while referring to the pandemonium at the House the other day.

The National Assembly later discussed a resolution seeking a public holiday on November 9, the birthday of Dr Allama Muhammad Iqbal. Interestingly, the resolution was moved by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Dr Nisar Cheema but it was opposed not only by the government and the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), but the PML-N itself.

Minister of State for Interior Shehryar Afridi opposed the resolution, saying that Prime Minister Imran Khan and his cabinet members believed in hard work and they had not taken even a single holiday. Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari also opposed the idea and expressed surprise as to how could the PML-N MNA moved the resolution when his own party was not supporting it.a
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ali Mohammad Khan suggested that the resolution should not be rejected and instead the mover should be asked to either withdraw it or bring improvement in it. Later, the House unanimously passed a resolution, paying a tribute to slain Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Samiul Haq and condemning his murder.

Published in Daily Times, November 7^th 2018.