ISLAMABAD:Federal Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Dr. Tariq Fazal Chaudhry on Monday informed the Senate that the government was ready for dialogue with the opposition, saying Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif’s offer for talks still stood and had not expired.
Responding to a point of order raised by Senator Mohsin Aziz, the minister said dialogue within Parliament remained the only viable way to resolve political differences and move the democratic system forward.
He recalled that during this year’s budget session, the prime minister had personally approached the Leader of the Opposition and proposed that the government and opposition should sit together and discuss their differences.
Following the prime minister’s initiative, he said, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political and Public Affairs, Rana Sanaullah Khan, the government’s parliamentary leadership and he himself had visited the opposition leader’s chamber to take the process forward.
Tariq Fazal said discussions were held over identifying a mutually acceptable venue where the prime minister, his team and representatives of the opposition could meet. He said the government had offered a venue in Parliament and also conveyed to the opposition that it could suggest any place of its choice within the Parliament House.
The minister said there was no pre-condition or pre-determined agenda for the proposed talks. He urged the opposition to develop consensus within its own ranks, nominate its representatives and decide a time and venue so that the dialogue could proceed.
He said previous protests in the federal capital had created difficulties for residents and disrupted normal life.
While acknowledging the opposition’s constitutional right to peaceful protest, he said exercise of that right should not infringe upon the constitutional rights of other citizens. Residents of the capital, he said, also had the right to travel freely to schools, colleges, hospitals, workplaces and businesses without facing blockades and disruption.
Dr Tariq Fazal urged the opposition to adopt a clear course, saying if it wanted dialogue, the government remained ready to engage.