ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Thursday urged the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) to return to parliamentary committees, particularly the proposed electoral reforms panel, saying its boycott was weakening parliament and limiting its ability to represent public concerns.
Speaking in the National Assembly, Bilawal called on the opposition to play an active role in parliamentary proceedings, urging Leader of the Opposition Mahmood Khan Achakzai to use his authority to persuade opposition lawmakers to resume participation in committees.
He said the government and the treasury benches had responsibilities to ensure parliament functioned effectively, while the opposition also had a duty to contribute to its functioning.
“The responsibility of activating this House also rests with the opposition,” he said, warning that those who wanted parliament to remain weak and ineffective would achieve their objective if elected representatives failed to perform their roles.
Bilawal said that the opposition’s decision not to participate in parliamentary committees, including the finance committee, had weakened the legislature and deprived constituents of representation in important policy discussions.
He said opposition lawmakers had a responsibility to raise the concerns of their constituents and political parties through parliamentary forums rather than staying away from them.
“If the leader of the opposition is serious about making parliament functional and wants all of us to play our role in this regard, I request him to use the authority given to him by Imran Khan,” Bilawal said.
He referred to the authority exercised by PTI founder and former prime minister Imran Khan in relation to the leaders of the opposition in both the National Assembly and Senate, urging them to use their positions to bring their lawmakers back to parliamentary committees.
Bilawal seeks PTI participation in electoral reforms
Bilawal specifically urged the opposition to nominate its representatives to the electoral reforms committee, saying participation would provide an opportunity to address allegations of electoral manipulation and improve the electoral process before future elections.
He said parliament had already adopted a resolution for the formation of the committee and that the opposition should nominate its members and submit their names to the relevant office.
The PPP chairman said the committee could examine concerns raised by PTI about alleged rigging and work towards addressing them before the next general elections, local government polls and by-elections.
“If you want the issue of rigging against you to be addressed in the coming general elections, local government elections or by-elections, we can begin with the electoral reforms committee,” he said.
Bilawal argued that the opposition’s participation would help parliament develop the strength and public respect it deserved, adding that electoral reforms required engagement from political parties rather than a boycott of parliamentary forums.
He said the effort to strengthen parliament would remain incomplete if key stakeholders stayed away from the process.
Calls for briefing on regional tensions, security threats
The PPP chairman also called for a comprehensive briefing to parliament on Pakistan’s evolving geopolitical, economic and security situation, saying the country could face significant challenges in the coming days, weeks and months.
He urged the finance, foreign affairs, defence and interior ministers to brief the House on developments affecting Pakistan and the wider region.
Bilawal said lawmakers needed to understand the potential risks facing the country, the implications of regional developments and the government’s preparations to address emerging challenges.
He highlighted disruptions and difficulties affecting maritime routes, referring to the Strait of Hormuz, the Red Sea and the Balkans, and called for an assessment of their potential consequences for the global and Pakistani economies.
He also sought a parliamentary discussion on developments linked to the Iran conflict, asking the government to explain how the situation could affect Pakistan’s economic outlook and regional security.
The PPP chairman said parliament should also be briefed on the implications of Pakistan’s defence agreements, including their potential effects in the coming days.
He stressed that every member of parliament had the right to receive information about the challenges facing the country and the steps being taken by the government to address them.
Bilawal said the briefing should cover both immediate threats and the broader strategic environment, enabling lawmakers to understand the risks and contribute to national decision-making.
Urges joint response to terrorism
Bilawal also called for parliament to be informed about the country’s internal security situation, particularly the threat of terrorism.
He said lawmakers needed details of the measures being taken by the government, the threats anticipated in the future and the preparations under way to counter them.
He urged the government to explain what further steps were required to address the security challenges, saying parliament should have an opportunity to discuss how political parties and other stakeholders could contribute.
The PPP chairman said discussions should encompass terrorism, defence agreements, economic concerns and other issues affecting the country, stressing the importance of collective engagement.
He maintained that the government could engage with the opposition on these matters, but opposition lawmakers also needed to use their parliamentary positions and participate in the process.
Bilawal said efforts to establish an electoral reforms committee and secure agreement among stakeholders on national issues would lose their effectiveness if opposition representatives did not take part.
He urged the opposition to return to parliamentary committees and work with other political parties to strengthen parliament’s role in addressing electoral disputes, security threats and economic challenges.
His remarks combined a call for greater opposition participation in parliamentary business with a demand for more comprehensive briefings on Pakistan’s domestic security and rapidly changing regional environment.
NA session witnesses fiery exchanges over terrorism
Earlier, the National Assembly witnessed heated exchanges between treasury and opposition lawmakers, with speeches touching on parliamentary democracy, political alliances, terrorism and national security, while Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan expressed concern over the detention of party supporters and the treatment of Imran Khan’s sisters.
PTI lawmaker Ali Muhammad Khan welcomed Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s remarks on strengthening parliament, saying his party also wanted the institution to be strengthened. He, however, criticised the PPP’s position during the passage of the 26th Constitutional Amendment, saying the party that had given the country the 1973 Constitution should not have spoken of a “brute majority” during the amendment process.
Ali Khan said he wanted to draw attention to the plight of workers, recounting the case of an elderly man who had returned after working as a labourer in Saudi Arabia for 30 years.
The man had invested his savings in setting up a shop, but it was demolished without informing him, the PTI lawmaker said, highlighting the difficulties faced by ordinary citizens.
Haideri targets PML-N leadership
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) leader Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri launched a sharp attack on Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders Hanif Abbasi and Khawaja Asif, questioning their political positions and the party’s record on democracy and military rule.
Haideri described Abbasi as a political “nomad”, alleging that he moved wherever he found an advantage. He also accused Khawaja Asif of following the principle that might makes right.
Referring to the PML-N’s political history, Haideri said the party had enjoyed a two-thirds majority when martial law was imposed but questioned its subsequent response to military rule. He said the JUI-F had condemned such actions, while its opponents had not even passed a resolution against them.
“We challenged Ziaul Haq; you are a product of him,” Haideri said, questioning the PML-N’s political credentials.
He also referred to past disagreements between the opposition parties over their approach to the military establishment.
Haideri said opposition leaders had previously criticised PTI founder Imran Khan for appearing alongside army chiefs, but now viewed similar engagements by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif positively.
He recalled the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), an opposition alliance formed against the then PTI government, saying his party had proposed a long march and a sit-in, but PML-N members had argued that their workers were not accustomed to protesting on the streets.
Haideri also criticised the government’s handling of relations with neighbouring countries, saying Pakistan faced difficulties on multiple fronts, including strained relations with China and closed borders with India, Iran and Afghanistan.
He questioned the outcome of efforts to engage Afghanistan on security issues and accused the government of failing to manage the situation effectively.
The JUI-F leader also defended his party’s position on terrorism, saying its members had been targeted despite issuing a religious ruling that taking up arms against the state was impermissible.
“Our people are being martyred for Pakistan,” he said, adding that his party had suffered attacks because of its opposition to armed violence against the state.
Haideri challenged those who accused his party of supporting terrorists, saying that if the allegation were true, his opponents would have to explain the attacks against it.
He also warned that political differences should not be used to undermine the sacrifices made by those fighting terrorism.
Hanif Abbasi stresses national unity, backs security forces
Responding to the criticism, Federal Minister for Railways Hanif Abbasi accused some lawmakers of using political pressure and religious references for personal or political purposes.
“There is such blackmailing in this parliament that even blackmailers would be embarrassed,” Abbasi said.
He urged lawmakers not to use Quranic verses and Hadith for personal interests, saying religious references should not be exploited for political purposes.
Abbasi said Pakistan belonged to those who had sacrificed their lives for the country rather than those who had accumulated wealth and built large houses and expensive vehicles.
“This Pakistan belongs to the soldiers standing guard at the borders,” he said, emphasising the sacrifices of security personnel.
He said political differences should not make lawmakers forget the sacrifices made for the country or the importance of national unity. He also criticised what he described as attempts to divide people along ethnic lines, including as Pashtuns, Saraikis, Punjabis and Baloch.
Addressing opposition lawmakers, Abbasi questioned their positions on terrorism and national security and called on them to join the fight against terrorist violence.
He referred to the sacrifices of security personnel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and asked why police officers in the province should continue to lose their lives amid political disputes.
“Do not use religion for your politics,” he said, urging lawmakers to unite under the Pakistani flag.
Abbasi also defended the government’s diplomatic standing, saying world leaders wanted to meet the prime minister and asserting that Pakistan’s foreign policy was receiving international recognition.
He said members of all ethnic groups served in the armed forces and rejected attempts to create divisions among Pakistanis.
“Pakistan should be a country where everyone stands united under its flag,” he said.
Gohar raises concern over Imran’s sisters, seeks release of detainees
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar expressed concern over what he described as the treatment of the family of party founder Imran Khan and the detention of party supporters.
Referring to Imran’s sister Noreen Niazi, Gohar said she had been taken to a hospital during the night, describing the development as a matter of serious concern for the party.
He also called for the release of PTI members detained under Section 3 of the Maintenance of Public Order (MPO), which allows preventive detention.
Gohar said the detention of Imran Khan’s three sisters was a violation of established traditions and raised concerns over the treatment of political opponents.
“If this situation continues, the federation is being put at risk,” he said, warning that the country’s democratic system was also under threat.
The PTI chairman’s remarks came amid the broader confrontation between the government and opposition lawmakers in the House, where speeches reflected deep divisions over the country’s political direction, security challenges and the role of democratic institutions.
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