A motion has been made to terminate the membership of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) member Sheikh Waqas Akram for his prolonged absence from the National Assembly.
National Assembly speaker Ayaz Sadiq, told the House that Sheikh Waqas Akram has been absent without any notice for the past 40 days.
According to the speaker, he cited parliamentary rules that any member can move a motion to vacate the seat, and upon approval of the motion, the seat can be declared vacant.
In response, PML-N member Nousheen Iftikhar moved an immediate motion, in which it was taken that Sheikh Waqas Akram’s seat should be declared vacant due to his continuous absence.
The speaker in response explained that according to the rules, he is bound to present this motion for a vote in the House within seven days, while the House has the power to postpone, reject or approve the motion.
The opposition opposed the motion and raised questions about the attendance of Nawaz Sharif and Hamza Shahbaz.
However, according to the Assembly Secretariat, the leave requests of both leaders are on record, while no written information or request has been received from Sheikh Waqas Akram.
According to the rules of the Assembly, even if Sheikh Waqas’s attendance or leave request is received later, the motion presented by Nousheen Iftikhar will remain effective, as the decision on it will have to be taken by the opinion of the House.
In the related development, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has disqualified 9senators, including prominent leaders such as opposition leader in the Senate Shibli Faraz and the Opposition leader in the National Assembly Omar Ayub.
Others disqualified include Sahibzada Hamid Raza, Zartaj Gul, Junaid Afzal Sahi, Muhammad Ansar Iqbal, Rai Hassan Nawaz, Rai Haider Ali, and Rai Murtaza Iqbal.
It should be noted that the Election Commission of Pakistan has disqualified 9 senators and members of the National Assembly of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf. According to the notification issued, those disqualified include Opposition Leader in the Senate Shibli Faraz, Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Omar Ayub, Sahibzada Hamid Raza, Zartaj Gul, Junaid Afzal Sahi, Muhammad Ansar Iqbal, Rai Hassan Nawaz, Rai Haider Ali and Rai Murtaza Iqbal.
According to the Election Commission, all these members have been disqualified under the Constitution after being convicted by the courts in the cases of May 9.