ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is likely to address the National Assembly during the current week to offer an olive branch to the protesting political parties, which have planned marches on to Islamabad, to get rid of needless hullabaloo.
“The prime minister is expected to make certain important announcements regarding different demands of the protesters that may stun many,” a cabinet minister said yesterday.
He said Sharif’s main thrust would be on quickly introducing electoral reforms as per the recommendations of the 33-member parliamentary committee of which Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) is also part.
The cabinet member said that the prime minister would express his readiness to even promulgate the electoral reforms even through a presidential ordinance to satisfy those who want them without loss of any time, and would ask the PTI to make proposals to the effect. He will thus throw the ball in its court.
In his speech, his main target audience will be the PTI and Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) joined by Shujaat Hussain’s Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q).
The source said that the prime minister will make dialogue offer to Khan and Qadri and assure that whatever would be agreed during the talks would be instantly implemented.
He said that Sharif would strongly rule out the demand for mid-term polls being made by the PTI.
There is no occasion for such assertion, he said adding that this option spawns chaos and anarchy and ridicules the mandate given by the people just a year back.
The cabinet member said that before delivering the speech, the prime minister will complete consultations with all the opposition parties and his allies to take their input.
INTERNEWS
