ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Saturday won the trust of the national assembly by securing 178 votes, six more than the required number, to ensure his tenure in the office following a major setback in the recent senate polls.
It was a foregone conclusion after the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), an anti-government alliance of opposition parties, decided to boycott the session and the government warned its party members of disqualification if they voted against Khan.
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led government had no option other than seeking a trust vote from the national assembly after its candidate for the general senate seat from Islamabad, Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, lost to the former PM and opposition’s candidate Yousaf Raza Gilani.
The total strength of the national assembly is 342. The opposition enjoys the support of 160 members, while the government and its allies have 180 lawmakers. Two seats are currently vacant.
Khan needed 172 votes to win the confidence vote. Announcing the result, speaker Asad Qaiser said: “Today, PM Imran Khan has secured 178 votes.”
Addressing the house after securing the trust vote, Imran thanked government lawmakers, including his allies, for staying by his side. He said the way senate elections were conducted in Pakistan was embarrassing.
Khan lashed out at his political opponents and called Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chief and former president Asif Ali Zardari and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif “thieves”. “These thieves were blackmailing my government for an NRO,” he said.
The NRO refers to the National Reconciliation Order under which Benazir Bhutto and many others were able to return to Pakistan from exile as cases against them were dropped. The term is now commonly used to describe an attempt to use an ordinance to allow someone to escape the legal process.
Khan said Zardari was commonly referred to in phrases such as ‘Ek Zardari sab pe bhaari (One Zardari dominates everyone else)’ and ‘Mr 10%’ because of his corrupt practices.
The PM further said that Sharif had faked sickness to go abroad so that he could avoid the legal consequences of his corruption and theft.
He criticised Yusuf Raza Gilani, who had defeated PTI’s Hafeez Shaikh in the recent Senate polls, as one of the most corrupt politicians in the country. “Just look at his (Gilani’s) wealth and assets before he became the PM and do a comparison with his assets after he became the PM. The picture will be clear,” Imran said.
As the national assembly proceedings began, the situation outside parliament became violent as dozens of PTI supporters clashed with PML-N leaders who were addressing a press conference.
The situation turned ugly when the politicians and the PTI supporters started pushing each other and exchanging harsh words.
TV footage showed PML-N’s Musaddiq Malik being hit from behind, following which he and ex-PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi chased down the man who pushed them to deliver some retaliatory blows.
A shoe was thrown at senior PML-N leader Ahsan Iqbal as he stood on a platform and shouted slogans criticising the government.