Lahore, 13th October: General (R) Asim Saleem Bajwa’s position as the Chairman CPEC Authority is unconstitutional.
According to reports from Baaghi TV, after the resignation of General Asim Saleem Bajwa as the SAPM, his position may be considered unlawful.
According to Baaghi TV sources, when Lieutenant General (retd) Asim Saleem Bajwa was appointed as the Chairman CPEC Authority through a presidential ordinance that has long since expired.
Pakistan’s renowned anchorperson Mubasher Lucman reveals shocking facts in his latest video on his YouTube channel.
Click on the link below to watch the full video:
According to Mubasher Lucman, Retired General who was Special Assistant to the Prime Minister of Information and Broadcasting presented his resignation last month, which was accepted by the PM yesterday.
Bajwa had presented his resignation amid the allegations regarding his family assets. However, the Premier refused to accept his resignation at that time and directed him to continue working as the Chairman CPEC Authority and SAPM.
In August, journalist Ahmed Noorani broke the news on a website alleging that Bajwa had used his offices in setting up off-shore businesses of his wife, sons and brothers.
After almost a week of silence, Bajwa issued a statement, saying he possessed all the documents about his family’s assets and was ready to present them and the money trail before any judicial forum.
Following the publication of the report, opposition parties called for Bajwa to face the allegations against him and to resign as the Chairman of the CPEC Authority.
Lucman claims that Asim Saleem Bajwa will need to leave his current position in the CPEC too. He says that General Bajwa is not legally the Chairman CPEC Authority as the ordinance under which the post was given, it’s legal protection has lapsed.
On administrative grounds, no one can remove Asim Saleem Bajwa as the head of the CPEC Authority, but legally the CPEC will now function without a legal mandate.
Under the Constitution of Pakistan, legislation is required by Parliament to establish authorities, for which administrative guidelines are not usually issued.
Earlier, the Chairman CPEC Authority informed the public via Twitter that the Prime Minister had accepted his resignation as Special Assistant, with the result that Lieutenant General Asim Saleem Bajwa no longer held any public office.
Former Attorney General and legal expert Arif Chaudhry has already said before his resignation that the CPEC Authority, which came into being in October last year, has been functioning without any legal cover for the last several months as the federal government Parliament has not been able to legislate on the establishment and activities of this important body for economic development.
On the other hand, some officials belonging to the Ministry of Law and Establishment Division said that an ordinance was in force by the CPEC Authority and this ordinance has expired and now the institution has no legal cover. CPEC was established by a presidential ordinance.
It is also pertinent to note that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government decided last year to set up a new body to expand and streamline development activities under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
The Presidential Ordinance issued under Article 89 of the Constitution is 120 days old. And so the CPEC Authority Ordinance 2019 was due to expire in February 2020.
Under the constitution, approval to re-issue a presidential ordinance for 120 days (or four months) can only be obtained from the National Assembly and in the event of the expiry of this (second) term, the Presidential Ordinance is automatically suspended.
The federal government tabled the bill in the National Assembly on January 30 to enact a permanent law on the authority before the first expiration of the C-Pac Authority Ordinance 2019.
The opposition strongly opposed the bill and refused to consider or discuss it. However, the same meeting approved the C-Pac Authority Ordinance for another 120 days.
The re-approved C-Pac Authority Ordinance 2019 has completed 120 days of age on May 29. And the ordinance is automatically repealed.
Thus, for the last 135 days, there has been no active law in the country regarding the existence and functioning of the CPEC Authority, and so this important economic institution is operating without any legal cover.
Lucman clarified that until the alternative law of CPEC Authority Ordinance 2019 comes, it will be considered as de facto law. And all the activities of the C-Pac Authority will be deemed valid under this Ordinance.
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