Taking to Twitter, former prime minister Imran Khan lauds his MNAs for resigning from the National Assembly.
Says MNAs are “standing firm for a sovereign Pak & against US-initiated regime change bringing to power criminals, convicted & on bail.”
Says regime change is the ultimate insult to any self-respecting independent nation.
The Deputy Speaker of National Assembly Qasim Suri on Thursday accepted the resignations of 123 PTI MNAs after they decided to disassociate themselves from the National Assembly following the ouster of PTI Chairman Imran Khan from the office of the prime minister.
Khan was ousted through a no-confidence motion brought against him by the then joint Opposition, a move that the PTI called a “foreign conspiracy” hatched by the United States. The allegation, however, has been categorically denied by the superpower.
After being removed from the office, the former premier asked his MNAs to tender their resignations and refused to accept the newly elected premier, saying “there can’t be any bigger insult to this country”.
Taking to Twitter Thursday, Imran Khan lauded his MNAs for tendering their resignations.
“Want to appreciate our 123 MNAs as their resignations have been accepted by Speaker Qasim Suri. Their standing firm for a sovereign Pak & against US-initiated regime change bringing to power criminals, convicted & on bail — the ultimate insult to any self-respecting indep[endent] nation.”
Want to appreciate our 123 MNAs as their resignations have been accepted by Speaker Qasim Suri. Their standing firm for a sovereign Pak & against US-initiated regime change bringing to power criminals, convicted & on bail – the ultimate insult to any self respecting indep nation.
Responding to the call of the former prime minister, PTI’s MNAs tendered their resignations to the deputy speaker of the National Assembly hours before the election of Shehbaz Sharif as the new prime minister.
The decision was reportedly made during the PTI’s parliamentary party meeting on April 11.
Sources privy to the matter quoted Khan as saying: “We will not sit in this Assembly under any circumstances.”
He said that PTI will not sit in the Assembly with the “people who have robbed Pakistan” and who have been “imported by foreign forces”.
“We have made this decision to keep the institutions under pressure who want this government to run the country […] we will not let them continue.”
It is worth mentioning that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) can hold the by-elections at any given point and it is not bound by any time limit.
MNAs who did not resign
Meanwhile, some of the MNAs who have not resigned from the assembly include Farrukh Altaf, Amir Sultan Cheema, Afzal Dhandla, Ghulam Muhammad Lali, Asim Nazir, Nawab Sher Wasir, Riaz Fatyana, Ghulam Bibi Bharwana, Ahmed Hussain Deharr, Rai Murtaza Iqbal, Qasim Noon, Ghaffar Wattoo, Samiul Hassan Gilani, Makhdoom Mubeen, Basit Sultan Bukhari, Aamir Talal Gopang, Amjad Farooq Khosa, Sardar Jafar Leghari, Javaria Zafar Aheer, Sardar Riaz Mazari, and Wajiha Akram.
Imran Khan ousted from power
On Saturday, April 10, Imran Khan was ousted as the prime minister of Pakistan from office through a no-confidence motion.
The session was chaired by Ayaz Sadiq — a member of the panel of chairs — after speaker Asad Qasier resigned from his post.
“174 members have recorded their votes in favour of the resolution, consequently the resolution for the vote on no-confidence against Mr Imran Khan, the prime minister of Pakistan, has been passed by a majority,” Ayaz Sadiq announced after the process of voting was completed.
Once the voting was concluded and the result was announced, Opposition leaders delivered their victory speeches. The session then was adjourned till 11am on Monday, April 11.
The deaths of four Pakistanis in a boat capsizing event close to the southern Greek island of Goudos have been verified by the Foreign Office.
The incident happened on Sunday and at least five illegal immigrants drowned as a result. According to Greek Coast Guards, 39 people were rescued after the wooden boat overturned, but 40 more are still unaccounted for.
According to a Foreign Office spokeswoman, the four Pakistani nationals were among those killed in the catastrophe. In order to help the remaining Pakistanis and repatriate the corpses of the deceased, the Pakistani Embassy in Athens has been in close communication with Greek authorities, she said.
Additional information was given by Aamir Aftab Qureshi, Pakistan’s ambassador to Greece, during a press conference. According to him, there were 80 Pakistanis on board the doomed boat, and efforts are still being made to find the people who are still missing.
He added that the overcrowding on the boat was a factor in the capsizing. There are worries over the safety of the missing people because a sizable portion of them are children. He stated that five boats carrying Pakistani nationals were traveling illegally from Libya.
The public was also informed by Ambassador Qureshi that the government will pay for the return flight of the accident victims’ bodies.
Approximately 450 Pakistanis, including 250 Zaireen, have successfully crossed into Lebanon from Syria, according to the spokesperson for the Foreign Office, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch.
During her weekly briefing at the foreign office in Islamabad, she stated that Pakistan is pleased with the resolution passed by the United Nations General Assembly on the Gaza Strip, which calls for an immediate ceasefire.
In addition, she expressed her satisfaction with the elimination of limits placed on UNRWA’s ability to carry out relief activities in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
It was stated by her that Pakistan is demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities in Palestine, an end to the genocide that is taking place in Gaza, the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, unrestricted access to humanitarian aid for those who are in urgent need, full support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and its mandated humanitarian activities, and medical assistance for those who are in urgent need.
Moreover, she stated that Pakistan emphasises the need for the international community to hold Israel accountable for the war crimes and crimes against humanity that it has committed in occupied lands.
The Israeli aggression against Syria, the illegitimate acquisition of Syrian territory, and the massive devastation of Syrian infrastructure as well as civilian and military sites are all topics that Pakistan is extremely worried about, according to the spokesperson for Pakistan.
According to her, this attack on Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is a serious violation of international law to the highest degree. By expressing our support for Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, we are also expressing our opposition to the Israeli government’s attempt to acquire territory through coercion.
The resolution 497 of the United Nations Security Council, which declares the annexation of the Golan Heights by Israel to be null and illegal and to have no international legal impact, was reaffirmed by her organisation.
