PTI set to take reins on 13th

–Fawad Chaudhry claims PTI has 180 NA seats after support from BNP-M, GDA as President Mamnoon approves summary for NA session

–Naeemul Haque urges caretaker setup, ECP to expedite process to hold oath-taking on time

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is set to form its government in Centre after President Mamnoon Hussain approved the summary on Thursday to hold the inaugural session of the National Assembly (NA) on August 13.

The PTI will take the reins with the claimed 180 seats in the NA after the president approved the summary moved by Interim Prime Minister Nasirul Mulk for convening the session of the new assembly.

According to the PM’s spokesperson, the summary was sent to President Mamnoon and a formal notification for the NA session, which would be convened for at least four days, was issued thereafter.

The first session will see the oath-taking ceremony of newly elected members of the Lower House of parliament. After taking an oath, the MNAs will elect the speaker and deputy speaker. The ballot for prime minister and opposition leader will be held shortly after.

The constitution calls for the assembly session to be convened within 21 days of a parliamentary election. As per the constitution, the NA session is to be called before August 15; however, it cannot be summoned without the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) consent.

Though the session has been called on August 13, the PTI wants the interim government and the ECP to remove the hurdles in order to get the session convened in time.

‘VICTORY NOTIFICATIONS SHOULD BE EXPEDITED’:

PTI leader Naeemul Haque has urged the ECP to issue victory notifications to elected candidates on an urgent basis.

Talking to reporters, he said that victory notifications need to be sent on an urgent basis by the commission so that Imran can take oath as prime minister without wasting any time.

“We are trying our best to ensure that the date for prime minister’s oath-taking ceremony is announced as soon as possible so we can start working towards Naya Pakistan,” stated Haque, adding, “Imran has received victory notifications for three out of his five constituencies.”

However, a fourth notification for NA-131 was issued to Imran later in the day. A notification pertaining to NA-53 is still pending owing to the breach of code of conduct by Imran while casting his ballot.

Haque also called upon Mamnoon to postpone his foreign tour so that oath-taking could be held on time.

The PTI leader claimed that the party is in a position to form a government in the Centre, Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).

PTI, ALLIES SECURE 180 NA SEATS:

Meanwhile, PTI Spokesman Fawad Chaudhry said that the party and its allies had managed to secure more than 180 seats in the National Assembly following successful coalition talks with the Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M).

“The Imran Khan-led PTI secured support from Balochistan National Party-Mengal on Wednesday, following which the party and its allies have crossed the 180-seat mark in the National Assembly,” Chaudhry tweeted.

It was reported that PTI has already claimed to have crossed the 172 required number of seats to secure the majority in the 342-seat National Assembly.

On Wednesday, BNP-M agreed to lend its support to the PTI in the National Assembly as the two signed a six-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) that Shah Mehmood Qureshi said would “strengthens viewpoints at the Centre”.

GDA TO SUPPORT PTI:

Similarly, the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) has announced to support PTI in the National Assembly and be a part of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly.

PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi made the announcement after meeting GDA President Pir Pagara Sibghatullah Shah Rashidi at the Kingri House in Karachi.

Qureshi said that both parties would be a part of the opposition in Sindh along with the Muttahida Quami Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), and the joint opposition would decide the future course of action in the Sindh Assembly.

He strongly criticised Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) for participating in the opposition parties’ protest against alleged rigging.

Qureshi said there was no denying that MQM-P was a political reality, and they would work together for the betterment of Karachi. He said Imran Khan’s willingness to open any constituency was not a political statement and more than thirty constituencies had already been reopened across the country, adding that Khan would decide the constituency which he would keep for himself.