ISLAMABAD: Senators from both sides of the aupper huse of the Parliament sparred over PTI founding chairman Imran Khan’s letter to the IMF linking release of next tranche of bailout package for Pakistan with audit of recently held general elections.
Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) Senator Saadia Abbasi has raised the issue in the house and regretted the invitation to the global lender to intervene in internal matters of Pakistan.
She said IMF was neither an investigation agency nor had the role to impose its will in matters linked with Pakistan’s sovereignty. She said Imran Khan’s role was one of the strongest opposition parties at present.
She said the opposition was a watchdog on government and a government-in-waiting, but domestic issues should be resolved domestically, highlighting the need for all to join hands to protect country’s interests.
PTI Senator Humayun Mohmand made it clear that it was the IMF that had sought a meeting with Imran Khan in June 2023. He said the IMF board of governors had declared that it would offer bailout package “only after Imran Khan gave a guarantee”.
He said the PTI chairman had been told that the first tranche would be released to the PDM government, second to the caretaker government and the third to the government that will get people’s mandate in a free and fair election.
“We are just reminding them that the next tranche is to be given to those having mandate,” the senator said, while accusing the government of being formed by those who had stolen mandate.
He reminded PML-N Senator Abbasi that this was also the opinion of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, former PPP senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar and PML-N leader Javed Latif. He praised the PML-N candidate from NA-66, Nisar Cheema, for admitting that defeat was better than a stolen mandate.
PML-N Senator Irfan Siddiqui said an invitation to foreign institutions to intervene in internal affairs of Pakistan by those who say “subjugation unacceptable” was condemnable. He also informed the chair that he has already submitted an adjournment motion on the subject with the secretariat.
Irfan Siddiqui said there should be no injustice with women in jails for their association with the PTI. However, he said, there were around 1,400 women behind bars, besides four PTI women, Dr Yasmeen Rashid, Aalia Hamza, Sanam Jawed and Aisha Bhutta.
He said he could not support the demand for releasing the four women without legal process, just because they belonged to the PTI.
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