ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Saturday expressed concern over the government’s act of “bypassing” parliament in the formulation of the National Security Policy (NSP) .

In a statement, PPP information secretary and MNA Shazia Marri regretted that neither the opposition nor the parliament knew the points of the NSP.

Approved by the federal cabinet last month, a public version of the NSP 2022-2026 was unveiled by Prime Minister Imran Khan at a ceremony on Friday.

The five-year policy document is being flaunted by the government as the first-ever strategy paper of its kind that sets out the state’s national security vision and guidelines for the attainment of those goals. It will guide government’s foreign, defence and economic policies and decision-making.

Ms Marri said the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government had announced the NSP without taking the parliament into confidence which was tantamount to “disrespect of the parliament.” She said the PPP had never politicised issues of national security, but unfortunately, the “selected government” had been politicising all important national issues like the country’s security policy.

“We will not allow the federal government to disrespect politics and the parliament on the national security issues and the PTI government should immediately take the parliament into confidence on the NSP,” she said.

PPP Senator Raza Rabbani had earlier regretted the approval of the NSP by the federal cabinet without placing it before the parliament.

Published in Dawn, January 16th, 2022