ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has given his approval for negotiations between the government and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
According to sources, the prime minister has authorized Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq to lead the talks, and the government delegation is ready to participate at the Speaker’s request.
Government sources emphasized that negotiations will only involve elected representatives of PTI, and discussions with non-elected members will not take place.
Meanwhile, sources from the Speaker’s office stated that no PTI leader has formally contacted them for talks yet. Speaker Ayaz Sadiq has maintained the parliamentary committee, and if the opposition shows willingness, he will convene its meeting immediately.
Parliamentary sources noted that despite the Speaker’s offer, the opposition has not reached out so far. The Speaker has invited PTI leaders to visit his chamber for discussions.
It is worth noting that PTI’s last meeting with the Speaker was held to appoint Mahmood Achakzai as the opposition leader.
In related development, former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani urged the Senate chairman and National Assembly speaker to move ahead with appointing leaders of the opposition in both houses of Parliament, warning that keeping these positions vacant marginalises dissenting voices.
The offices have remained unfilled since August last year, when then opposition leaders in the National Assembly and Senate — PTI’s Omar Ayub and Shibli Faraz — were disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) after their convictions in cases linked to the May 9, 2023 riots.
Although the PTI has nominated Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai as opposition leader in the National Assembly and Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen’s Allama Raja Nasir Abbas for the Senate, their appointments have yet to be officially notified.
