As the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM)—an alliance of opposition parties—gear up for the upcoming no-confidence vote in the Parliament, Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan warned them of consequences if they fail in their bid to oust him from power.
While addressing a gathering in Vehari on Sunday, PM Khan said that he was willing to “fight” his “political rivals,” adding, “But to the gang of thieves I say this: Are you ready for what I will do with you once your plans for a no-trust motion fail?” He further called the opposition leaders “criminals” and a “clique of looters,” accusing them of corruption.
The chairperson of the opposition Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, has been leading a march, popularly being referred to as the Awami March, against the PM. The rally started from Karachi, continued onto Sahiwal, Okara, and Pattoki, and reached Lahore on Sunday. After crossing a total of 37 cities, the opposition parties intend to present a no-confidence motion upon the rally’s arrival in Islamabad either today or tomorrow. The PDM claims that it has the necessary support of legislators to remove Khan.
While addressing participants of the march, Zardari said that the long rally marked the “beginning” of the end of Khan’s rule. In addition, speaking at a high-level intra-party meet, he called on Khan to resign from his position in the coming 24 hours or dissolve the National Assembly and conduct fresh elections before the no-confidence vote. “Even if he doesn’t resign and dissolve the assembly, the Opposition is well prepared. We will bring the no-trust motion and take this democratic war to [the] Parliament and get successful,” he warned.
پاکستان پیپلز پارٹی کے چیئرمین بلاول بھٹو زرداری کی جوہر ٹاؤن لاہور میں واقع ندیم افضل کی رہائش گاہ آمد،@BBhuttoZardari @NadeemAfzalChan pic.twitter.com/3BLSuINebY
— PPP (@MediaCellPPP) March 6, 2022
The key concerns of the opposition alliance for removing Khan are rising terrorist attacks, and surging inflation and unemployment. To this end, Bilawal asserted, “All opposition parties agree that no matter which one of them forms the government with a fresh mandate, it will have the power to get the people out of the tough times they are currently in.”
“The long march is a democratic attack on this undemocratic government,” Bilawal declared. Bilawal also mentioned that the Election Commission had been presented with a comprehensive report. However, he warned that if the Commission does not take the required action, the report will be submitted to “other institutions and the public.”
The PDM first launched the Awami March back in October 2020 over concerns about the increasing influence of the military on internal affairs. At the time, without explicitly naming the military, the group said that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government was being granted “fake stability by the same establishment” that had interfered with and influenced the 2018 elections to bring Khan into power.
As the Awami March regains momentum, Khan’s PTI launched its own rally called the Huqooq March against the PPP government in Sindh. After crossing through 27 districts, the march reached Karachi on Sunday. While addressing the participants, Minister of Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi announced that it was time for the PPP to be held accountable for “its corruption.”
However, the PTI’s challenges go beyond calls from the opposition. The party’s leader, Aleem Khan, who has previously been a close aide of PM Khan, said that it would be joining a breakaway faction led by estranged leader Jahangir Khan Tareen. Consequently, the two leaders, along with several other Provincial ministers and Members of the Provincial Assembly, met at Tareen’s residence. The faction is reportedly disgruntled that the senior party members who assisted in PM Khan’s Naya Pakistan vision are being ignored. Furthermore, they have raised concern about the issues with the Punjab province’s governance, which they said had weakened the party.
The PTI is also unsure about whether it can count on the support of other coalition partners such as the Pakistan Muslim League (Q) (PML-Q) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).
Additionally, reports suggest that the opposition PML-N party conducted meetings with the Tareen faction to gather support for the upcoming no-confidence motion. However, there is no confirmation from the faction or the opposition alliance about whether they will be supporting the opposition in the vote.
Against this backdrop, the PDM is preparing an offer that PTI allies “can’t refuse.”