Former PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi criticized the outgoing National Assembly, labeling it the ‘worst’ for passing almost 53 bills in a few days that only benefited the government and neglected the needs of the people, as reported by The News on Thursday.
Shahid Khaqan Abbasi expressed these views during his farewell speech in the Lower House of Parliament on Wednesday.
He asserted that none of the legislative actions taken in the past five years were aimed at genuinely assisting the citizens. He stated, “If you examine the records of the past five years, you’ll find that all the government-sponsored bills were devoid of any intention to provide genuine relief to the public.”
Abbasi emphasized that the erosion of public trust in the government system was a matter of great concern. He noted that this trust could not be restored through superficial legislation but required concrete actions.
He estimated that a decade would be necessary to revitalize the country’s economy, attributing the responsibility to all stakeholders. He suggested the formation of a truth commission to ascertain the roles played by various individuals in the country’s affairs.
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Highlighting a concerning incident, Abbasi pointed out that numerous parliamentarians were surrounding the interior minister to secure his signatures for government licenses. He questioned the lack of a streamlined process for such actions.
Abbasi voiced a prevailing sentiment that all assembly members were corrupt, indicating that the actions of passing 40 to 53 private members’ bills in a matter of days raised doubts about the credibility of the assembly members.
Directing his comments toward the chair, Abbasi emphasized the role of the speaker as the guardian of the assembly’s reputation and integrity. He expressed disappointment at the decline in the assembly’s dignity and called for a collective effort to uphold its honor.
Abbasi probed whether parliamentarians themselves paid taxes and highlighted the irony of an institution empowered to impose taxes on the populace when its members did not fulfill their own tax obligations. He criticized this contradiction, stating, “Leadership means not imposing taxes on others while evading them oneself.”
He questioned the financial practices of parliamentarians, especially when they left office with substantial assets, yet their tax payments remained uncertain.
Abbasi also criticized the government’s reliance on loans with high-interest rates to fund its operations, including defense expenses and parliamentary functions.
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Reflecting on his own experiences, Abbasi shared that he had faced the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) but was never questioned about his tax contributions.
He recalled instances from the previous regime when the dignity of the house was compromised, urging the Speaker to uphold the role of custodian of the assembly.
Following Abbasi’s address, the Speaker prorogued the National Assembly, and the planned joint sitting of parliament was also postponed, scheduled for 5:30 pm on Thursday.
