PM should give an account of past three years, not talk about what he will do next, demands Bilawal

Due to the role of the government and the attitude of the speaker, what should have happened did not happen. We were deprived of our rights, we could not even record our votes. The people want to hear what is happening in Lahore, Quetta, Karachi and Multan. They do not want a lecture on history or Islamic history from Imran Khan and what happens in different parts of the world. You had to give a three-year record, you are lecturing us, and you are trying to fool the nation. All the ministers were cheering on this kind of budget.

PPP Chairman said that every step made by the government is benefitting the rich not the poor. Assembly employees are committing suicide. The people for the past three years have been hearing the same thing over and over again. The public doesn’t want to hear about the NRO and how bad it was before. You have given tax amnesty for these people. This budget is also NRO to the rich, there is a relief for the rich and distress for the poor. The people must have confidence in the state and democracy. You are giving arrest powers in the name of FBR which is wrong. 

Replying to the questions by the journalists Chairman PPP said that the PM should give account for the past three years, not say what he will do next. Now the Prime Minister has no time, the people will hold him accountable. We will hold you accountable for all these wrongdoings. Instead of telling stories, the speech should tell us the solution to problems.
Chairman Bilawal said that Asad Qaiser has been the worst speaker in the country’s parliamentary history. Chairman Bilawal said that the opposition was deprived of its right by the Speaker of the National Assembly. Leader of the House means accountable to the nation and parliament.

Shahbaz Sharif could not attend the session due to a death in his family but the other opposition members should have been in the house. It is hoped that JUI-F and PML-N will issue show-cause notices to their members. Will send notices to members who were not in the House.

No other agency should interfere in the work of NAB. Unless the chairman and all officers bring their assets, they have no right to check the assets of others. Chairman Bilawal strongly condemned the raid on the house of Aijaz Jakhrani by the NAB and said that the raid was conducted at a time when Aijaz Jakhrani was not even at home. Aijaz Jakhrani was elected a member National Assembly but his elections were rigged. He had asked for a recount but was not listened to. We demand of the Election Commission to order a recount in his constituency.

 Bilawal Address in National Assembly

 Bilawal Bhutto Zardari while addressing National Assembly has strongly criticised the Speaker’s conduct yesterday and said that the speaker snatched the right of every member of the parliament.

PPP Chairman said the way this budget session was run became an embarrassment for the entire nation. The Opposition Leader was physically attacked which was witnessed by the entire country. He said that every member has the right to represent his or her constituency whether they voted for a budget for progress or destruction. This should have come on record. Addressing the Speaker he said that you did not allow the vote count.

The government faced difficulties with the 172 votes. I salute your treasury members especially the government member Amir Dogar who with utmost difficulties gathered 172 members of treasury benches. If you had accepted our request of counting then the entire nation would have seen that the PM did not have 172 votes. You should have ordered to close the doors and make division but you waited until all the treasury members were in. Before you, the Deputy Speaker also delayed the proceedings for gathering members of the treasury bench. You have violated the rules. This attitude will not protect the right of voting.

According to rule 276, you are bound to take the challenge of the voice vote. The last stage of voting does not show who voted for the budget and how. We think that at the time of the final vote count we could have been counted. You did not count but when I challenged the voice vote you got up and left.

Bilawal strongly condemned this attitude of the Speaker. Some members worked hard for this budget. Makhhdoom Jamil came to the assembly despite a death in his family. Ahsan Mazari also attended the budget session yesterday despite a death in his family. My father is sick but he sat here from beginning to the end, he said.

Unfortunately, some opposition members and your role let down not only the opposition members but the treasury benches as well. What is the solution to it, he asked? We cannot record our vote for the budget and FATF, if this is not rigging then what is?

After the speech of a member from Multan, Chairman Bilawal on personal explanation said that he has the right to respond to him. He said that we know this member from Multan far better than you. Imran Khan has yet to know his character. I will not take his name because I do not give him importance. He wants to hear his voice and not of his Prime Minister.
He said that if the treasury benches do not let me speak then Imran Khan will also not be able to speak in the National Assembly.

If you run this house according to rules then I promise that all of the PPP members will sit quietly during Imran Khan’s speech. He said that if you do not follow the rules, this house will not run. This foreign minister is involved in selling Kashmir, he has to deal with the emerging situation in Afghanistan but failed to manage a phone call from US President Joe Biden for his Prime Minister.

This is embarrassing for the whole nation that our prime minister is so unimportant that he cannot even receive a phone call. This foreign minister is about to become a threat to his party and his prime minister.

PPP leader said that this member from Multan had promised to create South Punjab province but now he has announced not to contest elections again because he did not fulfil that promise. This member talked about the Sindh assembly. The Opposition Leader was attacked by the “monkeys” in the National Assembly, similar kinds of cartoons tried to do the same in the Sindh Assembly.

The way you had suspended members, the same way the Sindh Assembly Speaker suspended a few members.

These cartoons have created history as they have not moved even one cut motion in Sindh Assembly. This shows their non-serious attitude in the assemblies. I ask the Prime Minister to request the ISI to tape the telephones of this member of the assembly because when he was PPP’s foreign minister, he used to campaign in the entire world to replace him with Yousuf Raza Gilani as the Prime Minister.

This is the truth and is the reason that he was booted out as a foreign minister.

Bilawal asked the Speaker to run the house according to the rules and provide equal opportunities to the treasury and opposition benches.