Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, who won the NA-122 Lahore seat in a nail-biting contest with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) candidate Abdul Aleem Khan on Sunday, has said that his party fellow Mohsin Latif had lost the provincial assembly seat from PP-147 because he had not given due time to the people of the constituency.
“The voters want easy access to their elected representative and if you don’t give them their due right, such upsets are bound to happen. I admit that I have also been unable to give proper time to my constituency after I was made speaker of the National Assembly but I will try and make up for the mistakes committed in the past now that the voters have reposed their confidence in me once again,” Sadiq said while speaking to Pakistan Today Editor Arif Nizami during his talkshow DNA on Channel 24.
Sadiq refused to confirm if he would again be made speaker of the National Assembly, saying it would be the party leadership’s decision. “As speaker I tried to remain impartial and did my best to create a conducive environment for members of the House regardless of their party affiliations,” he said.
The former NA speaker said that although PTI Chairman Imran Khan and his party leaders had been using indecent language against the PML-N top leadership and made serious allegations of corruption against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, yet the PML-N was ready to move forward with mutual respect for alleviating poverty and eliminating terrorism from the country.
“My victory would be completed only on the day when Khan agrees to work with PML-N and other parties for a progressive Pakistan,” he said.
He said Khan, being the chief of a popular party, was obligated to groom the youth by inculcating the values of morality and coexistence which were the core ethics of democracy, instead of teaching them agitation, indecent language and rude behavior.
Sadiq, who reclaimed the NA-122 seat after he was disqualified as NA speaker and member National Assembly in August this year, said he did not have enough words to thank God, the PML-N leadership and people for having faith in him and standing with him this test of time. He added that he, not for a moment, felt being alone in the battle of nerves and pride as the party leadership was always backing him.
