ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday “arbitration” was not the Supreme Court’s job and such matters should be discussed in the country’s parliament, stating that the coalition government was united on its position that elections should be held across the country on the same day.
He added that October or November would be suitable for holding polls across the country, reiterating his government’s resolve to push for national and provincial assemblies’ elections to be held simultaneously.
The Prime Minister expressed his dismay over the SC’s verdict to hold elections in Punjab on May 14 during his address to the cabinet in Islamabad and said that the matter of funding the polls would once again be sent back to the country’s parliament. The PM also stressed that all coalition parties were unanimous against disconnected elections in the country.
PM @CMShehbaz addressing a meeting of coalition parties' leaders in Islamabad https://t.co/6wm8JIyrDi
— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) April 26, 2023
Shehbaz Sharif Doubles Down on Same-day Elections ahead of SC’s hearing
Despite the joint session’s “constitutional efforts to address matters concerning the SC”, the PM said that “the situation is still challenging”.
For instance,” the PM continued, “the Supreme Court wishes to pursue matters with the three members bench” which “the parliament had already rejected”.
He said that his government still stood by its interpretation of the SC’s earlier April 4 verdict as 4-3.
“It is our moral and political responsibility to respect the verdicts made by the parliament,” the PM stressed, saying that he did not agree with the idea “that the apex court should be given the job of an mediator”.
He said that ” their responsibility is to decide matters as per the constitution of the country”.
Shehbaz Sharif said that the parliament completes its term on August 13 and if ninety days are added to that then the date should add up to Nov or Oct.
Notably, the PM’s address came only hours following a crucial meeting with leaders of the PDM.
The meeting was attended by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman alongside federal ministers.
In spite of his disagreements, the PM stressed that “all issues are to be settled by the parliament and nobody else”, saying that there is “an opinion that the doors for talks should be left open” to which he was willing to fulfill.
However, Shehbaz Sharif said, “what the format of the talks should be” was still open to discussion.
The PM suggested that one possible route could be that the Speaker of the National Assembly and the parliamentary committee could take up the job to help find a solution to political differences.
