ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz’s (PML-N) Sardar Ayaz Sadiq took oath as Speaker of the National Assembly in Islamabad on Monday.
The outgoing Speaker Fehmida Mirza administered the oath to the newly elected Speaker of the lower house.
Ayaz Sadiq was elected as Speaker of the 14th National Assembly by securing 258 votes, Shaharyar Afridi of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) begged 31 votes, while Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) S.A. Iqbal Qadri secured 23 votes.
“Sardar Ayaz Sadiq has secured more votes than the aggregate votes secured by the other candidates,” said outgoing speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza.
Meanwhile, PML-N’s nominated Murtaza Javed Abbasi was elected for the post of deputy speaker. Abbasi secured 258 votes, same number of votes Sadiq secured for the election of the NA speaker.
The MQM’s candidate Kishwer Zehra bagged 23 while PTI’s Munazza Hassan managed 31 votes out of total 312 polled votes.
The newly elected members of the National Assembly voted to elect a speaker and a deputy speaker earlier in the day. The election for the two offices was held through secret ballot.
The Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) withdrew its candidates, Nawab Yousuf Talpur from Umerkot and Ghulam Rasool Koreja from Rahimyar Khan, at the last minute in support of the PML-N.
On Sunday, PML-N had nominated Sardar Ayaz Sadiq for the post of speaker and Murtaza Javed Abbasi for deputy speaker.
After submitting his nomination papers for the post of speaker, Sadiq said if and once elected, he would strive to run the house in an impartial manner.
The three main opposition parties — PPP, PTI and MQM — had all fielded their candidates for the posts of National Assembly speaker and deputy speaker against Sadiq and Abbasi of PML-N, the single largest party in the house.
The MQM had fielded S.A. Iqbal Qadri and Kishwer Zehra and the PTI’s candidates are Shaharyar Afridi and Munazza Hassan.
Keeping in view the party position, elections for the offices of the prime minister, speaker and deputy speaker were merely be a formality since the PML-N had acquired more than a simple majority in the 342-member National Assembly with a number of independents having joined it.
DND
