Aitzaz Ahsan suggests PM to reshuffle his cabinet

ISLAMABAD: PPP Senator Aitzaz Ahsan, while addressing from the joint session of the Parliament on Friday, expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for expressing his sympathies and tendering an apology on behalf of his minister (Chaudhry Nisar).

During the joint session of the parliament on the fourth consecutive day today, Aitzaz said he stood in the House as he has been accorded respect by the party of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.

Terming the allegations against him as pathetic, the senator said that prime minister needs to review his cabinet and the members who surround him in order to assess their loyalty.



Stating his efforts for democracy, Aitzaz Ahsan said that he had struggled for democracy during the eras of different dictators and rejected offers of employment from the governments. “I was jailed, so was my wife, my sister during the Zia era," he said.

He, then, recalled the time when he had called off the long march and told that he did not call it off over any order from Kayani, but only after the prime minister had reinstated the judges following which he consulted with Munir Malik and other lawyers to conclude the march.

Responding to the allegations leveled by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar, Aitzaz Ahsan said that he had refused to go before Iftikhar Chaudhry after his reinstatement. He said that he had many channels to do business through his politics or connections, but he did not do it as he did not want to.

Addressing the PM, he questioned Nawaz Shairf as for how long he will apologise on behalf of those who have already abandoned him.

Aitzaz Ahsan said that the joint session of Parliament was called on the advice of opposition and only when the opposition stood behind him, the body language of the ministers changed. He said that before the opposition’s support, the body language of the PM and his ministers displayed disappointment and loss.

Responding to the LPG business allegations, Aitzaz admitted that his wife does LPG business and questioned about the quote. He said that LPG was deregulated in 2000. He said that his wife pays more taxes on LPG business than any minister.

Aitzaz, then pointed towards Chaudhry Nisar and said that he was still giving him eyes. He criticized Nisar and said that he should know that the government is not doing any one a favour by tolerating criticism.

He mentioned that former chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and now premier Nawaz Sharif were his clients, and if Nisar was calling them land mafia.

Aitzaz said that it is the government's responsibility to remain tolerant and then mentioned about the challenges that Asif Ali Zardari had to face during his tenure.

He said that if he walks out of the House, all his supporters and brothers will walk out with him to accompany him and then the PM will be left with no support except maybe Mehmood Achakzai.

After Aitzaz Ahsan’s speech, the joint session of the parliament came to an end and will resume at 5 pm on Monday.