ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Parliamentary Leader in the Senate Sherry Rehman said that the opposition parties would decide whether and how to work on the legislative business that is pending due to the government's reversal of the joint session.

Addressing the media after a meeting of the Steering Committee of the joint parliamentary opposition on Thursday, Rehman said, "The opposition parties met to decide whether and how to work on the legislative business that is pending due to the government's reversal of the joint session that they had called. This includes the ordinances that have been promulgated".

She said that the Steering Committee will consider further action after receiving in writing from the speaker that all bills in the joint session and ordinances promulgated will be discussed in a Parliamentary committee.

It is only after we receive the terms in writing from the speaker, and our leadership approves, will any action proceed, she said.

"All these bills and ordinances can be discussed in the parliamentary committee as we believe in the supremacy of the Parliament and dialogue, and not in closing our committee doors. But obviously, our leadership will take the final decision after the Steering Committee deliberates," she added.

Rejecting the government's claims that the opposition was behind the cancellation of the joint session, she said, "There is no question of us having approached the government or speaker to cancel or reverse the joint session. It was called by them and also cancelled because they are politically isolated by their allies; we have nothing to do with it.

It was in fact cancelled because the government does not have the numbers anymore to bulldoze their bills as their own people and allies have stepped back. They are afraid of being exposed and of facing defeats in the parliament. We have our numbers in the parliament and the support of the people of Pakistan."

This article first appeared in Business Recorder on Nov 12, 2021.