National Assembly to elect speaker, deputy speaker tomorrow

ISLAMABAD: The outgoing Speaker National Assembly, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, announced on Thursday the schedule for the elections of the speaker and deputy speaker’s slots, ARY News reported.

The elections for the posts of speaker and deputy speaker will take place on Friday (March 1), 2024. According to Article 53 of the Constitution of Pakistan, the National Assembly is mandated to elect a speaker and deputy speaker at its first meeting following a general election, with the process taking precedence over any other business.

The voting process will be conducted through a secret ballot, with the candidate receiving the majority of votes being elected as the new speaker of the House.

Subsequently, the new speaker will announce the schedule for the deputy speaker’s election, which will follow the same procedure as the secret ballot.

Strict security measures were implemented to ensure the safety of the session, with heavy contingents of police and Rangers deployed outside the Parliament House, and entry for unauthorized individuals onto the premises was prohibited.

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), President, Mian Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has nominated Sardar Ayaz Sadiq for the position of Speaker of the National Assembly on behalf of PML-N, and Bilawal Bhutto has nominated Ghulam Mustafa Shah as the candidate for Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly on behalf of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has nominated Aamir Dogar for the position of Speaker of the National Assembly, while PTI’s Junaid Khan will contest for the post of Deputy Speaker.