PESHAWAR, Oct 3: Pro-Musharraf opposition parties in the NWFP Assembly on Wednesday tabled a no-confidence motion against Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani.
In what appeared to be the worst pandemonium witnessed in the provincial assembly, all 31 legislators supporting Gen Pervez Musharraf read out the resolution one by one and the whole time treasury bench lawmakers kept thumping their desks and shouting ‘Go Musharraf, Go’. Leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who was accompanied by party lieutenants, witnessed the entire proceeding from the gallery.
Speaker Bakht Jehan Khan, who allowed lawmakers to vent their anger for about an hour, said that a decision on the no-confidence move would be taken on Oct 8, two days after the president’s election that was scheduled for Oct 6.
Members of the People’s Party Parliamentarians abstained from the assembly session but their absence did not affect the already charged atmosphere in the House.
Dissident leader of the Awami National Party Syed Qalb-i-Hasan and Dr Saleem Khan of the Sawbi Qaumi Mohaz as well as Syed Mazhar Qasim Ali Shah Tahir Bin Yamin, both independent MPAs, who had always supported the provincial government on various, were also among the co-movers of the resolution.
Earlier, on a point of order, minister for parliamentary affairs Malik Zafar Azam asked the chair to allow them to defeat the resolution. He said the treasury benches had ample majority to reverse the situation in favour of government. He said Akaram Durrani was enjoying confidence of majority, while the opposition, through this resolution, was trying to carving out a technical success for Gen. Musharraf on Oct 6.
Minister for food and excise, Fazle Rabbani blamed Gen Musharraf for the ongoing lawlessness, price-hikes, and uncertainty in the country. Mutahidda Majlis-i-Amal MPAs Amant Shah, Tajul Amin and Khalid Waqar Chamkani were noticeable by their shouts at opposition members.
Pakistan Muslim League (N) MPA Zafarullah Khan and PML’s MPA Nighat Yasmin Orakzai cluttered the entire hall by throwing papers and notepads on each other, but other lawmakers intervened and restrained them from physically attacking each other.
At times, Zafar Azam and Saeed Ahem Khan of the ruling PML climbed on their desks to attract the chair’s attention. MMA’s burqa-clad MPAs, who for a time acted as mere spectators, joined their male colleagues by noisily jumping into the fray.
Opposition leader Shahzada Gustasap said that the MMA had provided the opposition with an opportunity to get Gen Musharraf elected on Oct 6 from the Frontier assembly. He questioned the MMA’s ability to launch a movement against President Musharraf and said it could not launch a coherent campaign because of differences in its own ranks. “They will never dissolve the assembly,” he added.
Rifat Akbar Swati and Nasreen Khattak of PPP (Sherpao) and Nighat Orakzai actively tried to drown out MMA lawmakers’ uproar.
They accused MMA ministers of promoting corruption and dared them to resign for their wrongdoings. Subsequently, the speaker invited movers of the motion to individually table their resolution and they read out the motion in a cacophonous hall.
Later, the speaker postponed the decision on the resolution till Oct 8 and adjourned the session till Thursday.
