ISLAMABAD: Amid unprecedented uproar and physical brawl in the parliament, the Pakistan Tehreek- e -Insaf (PTI) government on Wednesday secured cleance of 33 bills including three of extraordinary significane , electrol reforms amendment bill 2021, endorsing the use of controversal electronic voting machine (EVM) in 2023 general elections, right to vote to overseas Pakistanis and amendment bill 2021 to grant complete autonomy to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP). After this amendment, the SBP will be an independent entity and its Governor will have absolute authority to rule the monetory market of Pakistan. This amendment to grant total autonomy to SBP was a pre -requsite of the International Monetory Fund (IMF) to grant much-needed loan to Pakistan. Although, the amendment will pave way for the PTI government for securing more loan from IMF and other multilateral donors like the World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB), but it will have extremely dangerous impact on Pakistan’s financial health in the longer term. In the post- amendment times, the government will not have any authority to ask SBP to intervene into the monetory market to rescue already weakening rupee. The grant of absolute autonomy to SBP was a long outstanding demand of IMF. In the past, the government of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN) and Pakistan People Party (PPP) had not accepted this IMF condition.
The grant of right to vote to overseas Pakistanis was a key success of PTI government in Wednesday’s joint session. The future politics of PTI hang on this crucial amendment. Prime minister , Imran Khan, had a dream to make the law to grant the right to vote to overseas Pakistanis. In fact, Imran Khan takes overseas Pakistanis as his vote bank.
Prior to presenting bills in the joint session, both treasury and oppisition had heated speeches on the floor of the house. PMLN president, Shahbaz Sharif, called EVM as evil wish machine in his address and claimed that after taking undue benefit of RTS ,to which he described as road transport system, the government of Imran Khan wanted to use EVM to steal next general elections.
PPP chairman, Bilawal Bhutto in his speech said his party will not accept the result of next elections if EVM was used in it. He extended full support to Election Commission of Pakistan. Bilawal Bhutto said ” Let me tell you Mr Speaker, we will move the court against EVM use in next general elections.
Mualana Fazalur Rehman of Jamiat Ulama e Islam (JUI-F) , who is not a part of the parliament this time, roared in Quetta while addressing a public rally that he denounces RVM use in next elections.
After the session, PPP supremo and former president, Asif Ali Zardari, told the reporters that Imran Khan’s government was bagging successes due to someone else. Since Asif Ali Zardari is an encylopedia of politics, his short comments speak out a long and subtle story of Pakistan’s politics.
Information minister, Fawad Hussain Chaudhary, also spoke to the reporters after the joint session. He categorically declared that come what may, EVM will be used in the next general elections.
