Islamabad:
Addressing the nation just after the Senate election blow, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has mentioned he is prepared to sit in the opposition if his party’s lawmakers really feel that he is “incompetent”.
He also gave a warning to the country’s opposition that he will not spare anybody till “they return the nation’s money even if that meant losing the premiership.”
“All members [of PTI], this is your democratic right. If you feel I am incompetent, I will sit in the opposition,” Khan mentioned although addressing the nation on Thursday.
“I am addressing the PDM right now, my message to them is that I will not spare anyone of you even if I lose power until you return the nation’s money,” he added.
Khan’s party suffered defeat on a important seat in the country’s Senate elections.
In a close vote, former Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) defeated Shaikh, who presently serves as the country’s finance minister, by 169 to 164 votes, according to unofficial final results.
The outcome came as a blow to Khan’s PTI as his party and its allies manage the National Assembly, and the implication is that some members or allies may perhaps have defected when they voted by secret ballot.
A session of the National Assembly has been summoned for Saturday exactly where Prime Minister Khan will seek a vote of self-assurance from the parliament.
Khan on Thursday raised concerns more than the “performance and responsibility” of the country’s election body and pinned the blame on the opposition parties just after losing the Islamabad seat.
Khan questioned the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) saying, “Your (ECP) major responsibility was transparency (during Senate polls) but why did you ask for a close ballot.”