–Senate to take up no-confidence motions against Senate chairman
–Joint Opp urges incumbent chief Sanjrani to resign, says it has enough numbers to outvote him
–Sanjrani says ‘we will rout’ no-confidence motion against him
–Shehbaz meets Fazl, warns against horse-trading in Senate polls
–PTI’s Shibli says Sanjrani will not go down without a fight
ISLAMABAD: The Senate of Pakistan will meet on Thursday to decide the fate of its incumbent chairman, Sadiq Sanjrani.
The motion against Sanjrani was filed by the joint opposition on July 9, after it reached a consensus on ousting Sanjrani from the top post in a ‘Rehbar’ Committee meeting. It named Hasil Bizenjo—a Balochistan senator— to head the Senate instead.
The government senators, who are standing behind Sanjrani, in a tit-for-tat move tabled a resolution against Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) Saleem Mandviwalla, who is the deputy chairman. It has yet to name its nominee for the post though.
The joint opposition is in a comfortable numerical position to turn the tables on the ruling coalition if it goes ahead with its decision to send Sanjrani packing.
As per the calculations, the opposition parties, in the 103-member House, enjoy the support of 61 senators while the governing alliance has the backing of 40 members. The chairman can be removed by the majority of the total membership. Thus the support of at least 52 senators will be required to carry the no-confidence motion.
The opposition alliance comprises the PML-N with 29 senators, PPP with 20, National Party of Mir Hasil Bizenjo with five members, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) with four senators, Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) of Mehmood Achakzai with two and Awami National Party (ANP) of Asfandyar Wali with one member in the Upper House.
The government alliance is in a weaker position, with PTI’s 14 senators. Its ally Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has five, Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) has two, and Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) and PML-Functional have one senator each in the House. 8 senators, who sit on the government benches, are from tribal districts.
The two votes of the Jamaat-e-Islami can’t be counted in the basket of the opposition or the government as this party has embarked upon an “independent” policy as it stayed away from the APC and doesn’t stand with the government as well.
With numbers against it, the government had been making frantic efforts to defeat the motion against Sanjrani—who became the chairman with support from the PPP and ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) last year.
It held meetings with Jamiat-Ulema-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Fazlur Rahman and Senator Hasil Bizenjo to no avail.
During a meeting with Fazl last week, PTI Leader in the House Shibli Faraz urged the JUI-F chief to convince the opposition to take back its motion against Sanjrani, and the government would do the same concerning Mandviwalla.
However, the delegation failed to convince Fazl, who said that it was too late to retract the motion. Shibli Faraz had also attempted to convince Bizenjo to withdraw the no-trust motion against Sanjrani. He had also refused.
After the failed negotiations, it seems the no-confidence votes against both Senate heads will go ahead.
As the senators are meeting to outvote both the chairman and the deputy chairman, none of them can chair the Senate session as per the rules and regulations. So, now the session will be hosted by Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Senator Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, who was appointed by President Dr Arif Alvi as the presiding officer.
‘SANJRANI CAN STILL RESIGN’:
A day ahead of the crucial Senate vote, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said the opposition was in a comfortable position to outvote Sanjrani.
Over 50 senators from the PPP, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), National Party, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Awami National Party attended the lunch hosted by Bilawal in the Senate’s banquet hall.
Opposition meeting hosted by Chairmam PPP @BBhuttoZardari in the Senate banquet hall today. Full house again. pic.twitter.com/YewkoyP3ud
— SenatorSherryRehman (@sherryrehman) July 31, 2019
Speaking about the impending vote, Bilawal said it would be good for Sanjrani if he resigns voluntarily, if not, then he would be going tomorrow anyway.
Hasil Bizenjo looked confident a day ahead of the election. He also urged the Senate chief to resign, saying it would be better for both parties. He also claimed to have the support of 65 opposition senators.
PTI leader Shibli Faraz, however, dismissed the talks of resignation, saying Sanjrani will not go down without fighting. He said the government believed in him and that the opposition was “spreading the rumours regarding Sanjrani’s resignation”.
Separately, Sadiq Sanjrani reiterated he won’t step down from his office. The chairman of the upper house of parliament said in a statement that he would resolutely face the opposition’s motion to oust him.
“We will rout the opposition’s no-confidence motion,” said Sanjrani.
FAZL-SHEHBAZ MEETING:
Separately, Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif said that the constitution and democracy will become victorious in Senate polls, urging the government to “avoid their undemocratic conduct”.
Chairing the party’s senators meeting in Islamabad, he reviewed the strategy for no-confidence motion against the Senate chairman.
“No hurdle in opposition’s victory in chairman Senate polls as we have a majority in the House,” he said, warning the rulers’ conduct was not democratic.
Meanwhile, Maulana Fazlur Rehman also called on Leader of Opposition in National Assembly, Shehbaz Sharif at his residence in Islamabad. The two leaders exchanged views over the no-trust motion against Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani.
