ISLAMABAD:
Top opposition leaders on Wednesday called for a renewed national political consensus to safeguard the Constitution, calling on all political stakeholders to come together in the spirit of the 18th constitutional amendment.
The call was made at a press conference held on the occasion of Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan’s joining the Tehreek-e-Tahafuz-e-Ain Pakistan (TTAP), an alliance of opposition parties.
At the press conference, senior opposition figures announced a broader political alignment and expressed concerns over governance, institutional functioning and economic conditions.
Leader of Opposition in the National Assembly Mahmood Khan Achakzai said political forces must work together to protect the Constitution and restore the true spirit of parliamentary democracy.
He called on all major political leaders, including Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari and Maulana Fazlur Rehman, to intervene to protect the collectively framed Constitution.
“Just as all political parties reached consensus during the 18th Amendment, they must once again come together to protect the Constitution,” he said.
He said Parliament had been weakened over time and needed to be restored as a truly representative institution of the people, adding that his political program was ready to provide “unconditional support” for strengthening parliamentary democracy.
Achakzai said inflation had become unbearable for ordinary citizens and called for collective political action to address public grievances.
He also warned that leaders were reluctant to take political unrest to the streets, saying the situation in the country was already fragile and required responsible management.
“We are concerned about what could happen to the country in such circumstances,” he noted.
Leader of the Opposition in the Senate Raja Nasir Abbas said Pakistan was facing institutional and democratic challenges, adding that Parliament had been reduced to a symbolic forum rather than a functional representative body.
He said citizens faced rising inflation, unemployment and shrinking civic space.
TTAP Vice President Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar and Economic Spokesperson Muhammad Zubair also spoke on the occasion, reiterating that the alliance aimed to address constitutional violations and economic difficulties affecting public rights.
“The economy is under severe stress, with inflation, unemployment and high taxes affecting ordinary citizens. The government must focus on public aid and economic stability,” he said.
