By Staff Writer
ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly descended into acrimony on Friday as the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) accused the coalition government of failing to deliver adequate aid to flood-stricken Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and staged a walkout over the disqualification of its lawmakers.
Record rainfall, battering the province since Aug. 15, has unleashed widespread devastation, prompting a state of emergency. The deluge has demolished homes, displaced thousands and left a trail of destruction across Buner, Swat, Shangla and Mansehra.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan sharply criticised the National Disaster Management Authority’s (NDMA) response, particularly in hardest-hit Buner, charging that it “did not help as much as it should have.” “I say at this forum that we will continue to be at odds with the NDMA,” Gohar said on the floor. “I said the day-before-yesterday that the NDMA only gave us a few supplies in Buner, while 236 people have been killed, 120 are injured, and 1,470 shops and 875 homes have been destroyed.”
Law and Human Rights Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar interrupted, dismissing Gohar’s remarks as “politics just for the sake of politics” and pressing the opposition to focus on public needs.
Tarar outlined the three-tier structure of disaster response in Pakistan. “There is a district disaster management authority, which the province’s deputy commissioners run; then there is the provincial disaster management authority, which is also run by the province,” he said. “The NDMA centres around information sharing. I will provide a detailed explanation, but if the opposition asks questions for the sake of politics and then walks out, then I don’t know what assembly we are sitting in.”
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq described the PTI’s grievances as “highly regrettable,” noting that despite claims of being silenced, Gohar and party stalwart Asad Qaiser had spoken multiple times. As Gohar started his address, Sadiq proposed arranging a visit for opposition members to the NDMA headquarters.
Later in the session, Tarar announced that Rs1.3 billion had been allocated to the NDMA for flood relief and related efforts. “The nation needs to work together for flood relief,” the minister said. “The federal government is working with provinces on relief operations.”
He highlighted the NDMA’s alert system and mobile app, adding, “We recommend that those in affected areas download the app; 92 per cent of predictions are accurate.” Tarar emphasized that much work remained, urging, “Relief has a long way to go, so we ask that the nation stand with and help those affected by floods.”
The PTI’s boycott was also fueled by frustration over the disqualification of its lawmakers, though specifics were not addressed in the session.
In a separate debate, Minister of State for Interior Affairs Tallal Chaudhry expressed openness to dialogue with Balochistan’s leaders on the fraught issue of missing persons, insisting the government has “zero tolerance” for unlawful disappearances. “No institution wants to be blamed, nor [wants] any agency to displace people outside the law,” he said.Chaudhry noted that a recent Balochistan National Party-Mengal rally in Quetta, marred by a suicide bombing, lacked interior ministry security clearance.
Addressing an ongoing sit-in in Islamabad by the Baloch Yakjehti Committee, which demands the release of detained members including chief convener Dr. Mahrang Baloch, Chaudhry said the government and district officials were in contact with protesters, though he named neither the group nor specific interlocutors.
Describing the protesters — women from Balochistan — as “our sisters and daughters,” he rejected accusations of neglect. “This is not the case. They are our daughters, although they are protesting on a very important road and attempts are being made to provide them security and facilitate them despite court orders and legislation about protests from this house.”
Chaudhry said the government was approaching the matter legally but lamented that “unfortunately, a lot of people are going to the protest for photo sessions.” He alleged the demonstration had been “held hostage by a few women and people who used it for their own personal point scoring.” Despite outreach from multiple parties, talks had not concluded, he said, because of “many demands that the government cannot fulfil,” including releasing individuals on bail who are under trial in courts.
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