ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Wednesday announced that the party will issue show cause notices to 20 lawmakers alleged of being involved in horse-trading during Senate elections.
“Horse-tradings in Senate has been going on for 30-40 years now, but PTI has set an example by being the only party in history to probe into the matter. We will send show cause notices to the lawmakers and provide them with an opportunity to give an explanation,” Imran said while speaking to the media in Islamabad.
The PTI chief added that the lawmakers who fail to respond to the notice and do not provide an explanation will be referred to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).
Speaking about issuance of party tickets for the general elections 2018, Imran said that tickets will be presented “purely on merit”. “I would not allow sale of tickets for elections. If someone in involved in such a practice, inform me and I will hold him accountable. Tickets will be issued purely on merit,” the PTI chairman added.
Khan also announced names of the 20 lawmakers involved in horse-trading during Senate elections. The lawmakers include Nargis Ali, Deena Naz, Fauzia Bibi, Naseem Hayat, Nagina Khan, Sardar Idrees, Ubaid, Zahid Durrani, Abdul Haq, Qurban Khan, Wajeehuz Zaman, Amjad Afridi, Babar Saleem, Arif Yousuf, Yaseen Khalil, Javed Naseem, Faisal Zaman and Samiullah and two others.
Earlier today, MPA Javed Naseem – one of the lawmakers on the list – announced his departure from the party to Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q).
15 PTI lawmakers involved in Senate horse-trading: report
According to an inquiry report presented to party chief Imran Khan earlier today, around 15 (20 as per Imran Khan’s press conference) PTI lawmakers were involved in horse-trading during Senate elections.
An inquiry report was submitted to Khan on Wednesday, according to which 30 party lawmakers were offered a deal. 15 out of the 30 PTI members accepted the deal, whereas one lawmaker backed off after initially agreeing, the report said.
Moreover, it was mentioned that Rs 1.2 billion were distributed among lawmakers who accepted the cash-for-vote scheme during the Senate elections.
The report added that 3 PTI lawmakers received a sum of Rs 110 million on February, 5 members received Rs 40 million each on 28 February, 6 lawmakers received Rs 30 million each on March 1 and March 2, while another party leader received Rs 40 million the following day.
