- The government and opposition senators are discussing the matter in the Senate, says Tarar.
- Zafar also wrote to the Senate president about the opposition leader.
- He says the vacant seat raises questions about the parliamentary system.
The Treasury and opposition benches have agreed on the name of Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) chief senator Allama Raja Nasir Abbas as leader of the opposition in the Senate, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader lawyer Ali Zafar said on Monday.
This development came a week after Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-e-Pakistan (TTAP) chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai was appointed leader of the opposition in the National Assembly.
Speaking to the media, the PTI leader said Senate President Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani and Treasury and Opposition senators had consulted on the appointment of the opposition leader in the Senate.
Confirming the development, Federal Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar said the MWM chief, a PTI ally, would be the leader of the opposition in the Senate, adding that a notification in this regard was being issued.
The post has been vacant since August last year, when the then leader of the opposition in the upper house of parliament, Shibli Faraz, was disqualified by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) following his conviction in cases related to the May 9, 2023 riots.
Earlier, PTI’s parliamentary leader in the Senate wrote a letter to the Senate President, urging the appointment of an opposition leader in the upper house of parliament.
The PTI leader told the Senate president that his party nominated the MWM chief for the post and urged that he be appointed as the opposition leader in the Senate without delay.
Zafar said the position of opposition leader was crucial in a parliamentary democracy, adding that the position was essential for effective governance, constitutional oversight and transparency in the parliamentary system.
The vacant post of opposition leader in the Senate raises questions about the parliamentary system, the PTI leader added.
He noted that without an opposition leader, the House remained institutionally incomplete.
