LAHORE: Despite repeated denials by the Armed Forces, Punjab Governor Omar Sarfraz Cheema has for several months requested the army to intervene to bring the province out of crisis.
He has also decided to send a reference against Justice Jawad Hassan of the Lahore High Court to the Supreme Judicial Council for calling the Speaker of the National Assembly to take an “illegal decision” to swear in the newly elected Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz.
According to the media reports, the governor on Thursday wrote a letter to the Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa asking him to play a leading role in the current climate of chaos as he was of the view that there was a constitutional crisis.
Attached to the letter were separate letters written by the Governor to the President and the Prime Minister which he had sent to General Bajwa just before writing.
He wrote that these two letters cover my real concern and dilemma over the constitutional crisis facing this country especially Punjab province.
In a letter to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the Governor of Punjab accused Hamza of taking advantage of being the son of the Prime Minister to elect himself as the Chief Minister.
He also spoke in support of the US Alliance, but said that maintaining some independence was not the answer.
Omar Sarfraz Cheema urged the Army Chief to help restore the constitutional structure by trusting those who deserve to be considered honest, fair and credible in the case of the federal and provincial governments of Pakistan.
The governor has already expressed concern over his stated position that the oath taken from Hamza Shahbaz as Chief Minister was illegal.
He alleged that Hamza had used his powers as the Prime Minister of his father Shahbaz Sharif to hold the Governor House hostage on April 30 for the swearing-in ceremony.
Omar Sarfraz Cheema in several tweets condemned the alleged disrespect of law and constitution and said that if the Chief of Army Staff provided me with one Subedar and four soldiers then I would personally arrest unconstitutional, illegal and fake Chief Minister Hamza Shahbaz and put him in jail.
Earlier in the day, he had clarified in his statement that he had made it clear in his statement what kind of intervention he expected in this situation and what was the need for it.
However, Omar Sarfraz Cheema added that in the past, political parties had always demanded the intervention of the 111 Brigade of the Army.
I have just asked for four young men and a Subedar.
He further added that the province, which was facing a constitutional and legal crisis, had been taken hostage by force and termed the silence of political parties as a matter of grave concern.
Other provinces should take care of themselves.
He also said that if those who violated the constitution and the law were forcibly protected, then anyone could take up a constitutional post in the future.
Because a ‘neutral umpire’ ensures equal competition for all parties, otherwise they cannot be called ‘neutral’ and the game will not be fair.