PTI Chairman Advocate Gohar Ali Khan on Wednesday termed the proposed 27th Amendment as an “attack on the House” and said he and his party would continue to raise voice against it.
According to PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the proposals for this new amendment include the creation of constitutional courts, the restoration of executive magistrates, the end of protection of provincial actions under the National Finance Commission (NFC) and amendments to Article 243 of the Constitution, which relates to the command of the armed forces.
Addressing the National Assembly today, the PTI president spoke about the proposed amendment and noted that when the 26th Amendment was passed, the PTI “made great efforts” with Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman.
“Maybe this time we don’t need to visit his (Fazl’s) house or sit with you in the committee,” Gohar said, directly addressing the vice president, who was presiding over today’s session. “We will raise our voice against this as it is an attack on the House.”
Gohar added: “Whenever there is a constitutional amendment anywhere in the world, it happens with consensus and modifies things according to the needs of the country.”
The PTI chairman said the 27th Amendment goes “against the spirit of this House and the Constitution”, stating that the country cannot be further divided and urging that amendments not be tabled that would put more pressure on the courts.
“Amending the Constitution is a right of this House, and in this House, it is a right of those people who have the mandate of the people,” Gohar said. “Our democracy is very fragile; people have no faith in the courts.”
He told the vice president that when the 18th Amendment was passed in 2010, it was “passed with consensus and unity with the people.”
“The world recognized it and celebrated it,” Gohar said. “However, when he introduced the 26th Amendment, he introduced 56 amendments, which were reduced to 25 and then to 18. We strongly opposed four of those amendments, including constitutional bench, tenure of judges and preservation of the Election Commission.
“This is a time when the nation is very divided; tensions are high, terrorism is rising, the deficit is increasing and people cannot bear any more problems. Please be concerned about Pakistan’s security.”
Amendment 27 is not intended to reverse Amendment 18: Tariq Fazal Chaudhry
Responding to some points raised by opposition members, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry called for an end to “negative and false propaganda”.
He assured the National Assembly that the 18th Amendment would not be repealed by the 27th Amendment.
He denounced attempts to make the 27th amendment controversial, even before the official draft saw the light of day, based on assumptions and conjectures.
He said there was no plan to take over educational institutions and educational boards in the provinces. “We’re just talking about a uniform curriculum,” he said.
Chaudhry said no action would be taken that would weaken the federation, the provinces and the relationship between them. “The purpose is to improve governance and reinforce defense and strengthen the relationship between the federation and the provinces,” he stressed.
He said allies and all stakeholders would be taken into account and matters related to the National Finance Commission award would also be decided through consultations.
He regretted that the 26th Amendment has also been described as an attack on the independence of the judiciary. He noted that an independent constitutional court would help reduce the delay.
The minister highlighted that the creation of the constitutional court was agreed upon in the Charter of Democracy signed between the PML-N and the PPP in 2006.
He said amendments to the Constitution required a two-thirds majority and not consensus. He said the spirit of the Constitution would be followed.
On the KP chief minister’s demand for a meeting with jailed PTI founder Imran Khan, he said there was a procedure as per the jail manual. He said Imran’s relatives and lawyers continued to meet him.
PTI presents resolution in NA
PTI members in the National Assembly moved a resolution to arrange a meeting between KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi and Imran Khan and PTI members signed the resolution.
“This House affirms that consultation between elected representatives and their political leaders is a cornerstone of parliamentary democracy,” the resolution states.
Acknowledging that Imran remains the head of the largest political party in the KP Assembly, the resolution said that the CM, as the constitutional head of the provincial government, “should be able to consult its leader on matters of governance and public mandate.”
“This House considers that the denial of such access is a violation of democratic norms and an affront to the constitutional spirit that upholds dialogue and accountability,” he said.
Through the resolution, the PTI members urged the federal and Punjab governments to implement the Islamabad High Court orders regarding the CM’s meeting with Imran in letter and spirit.
“This House further declares that such meeting shall constitute an official and legitimate consultation between the Chief Executive of the Province and the Leader of the largest parliamentary party, in accordance with the principles of representative democracy and federal comity,” the resolution states.
Last Thursday, CM Afridi was denied a meeting with Imran for the fourth time since he took office.
Afridi has called the consultation with Imran crucial to announcing his new provincial cabinet after his election as prime minister in October.
