ISLAMABAD: Opposition parties on Thursday strongly criticised Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s decision to join the Trump-led Board of Peace. They questioned the process, intent and lack of parliamentary consultation.
US President Donald Trump launched the “Board of Peace” at Davos on Thursday. World leaders, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, signed its founding charter. The initiative focuses on a lasting agreement for Gaza.
Leaders and senior officials from 19 countries attended the ceremony. Trump allies from Argentina and Hungary were also present. Trump signed the charter first and witnessed the ceremony at the World Economic Forum.
Pakistan received an invitation from President Trump and later accepted it.
Speaking in the National Assembly, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman criticised the decision. He said the government failed to inform parliament on a matter of national importance. He questioned whether the cabinet had been consulted.
Fazlur Rehman asked why a new board was needed. He noted that the United Nations and UN Security Council already existed. Maulana Fazal ur Rehman termed the decision an attempt to seek President Trump’s blessings.
He called the move extremely sensitive. Hitting at Government, he accused the government of shaping foreign policy under international pressure. He announced February 8 would be observed as a “black day.”
In the Senate, Opposition Leader Allama Raja Nasir Abbas criticised the move. He called Pakistan’s participation morally wrong and indefensible. He raised concerns over its implications.
PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan also criticised the decision. He said the prime minister joined the board without consultation. He said the move could not be termed positive.
Addressing the National Assembly, he said the House was sidelined. He demanded clarity on the terms of joining the board. He said the board was not a UN institution.
Former National Assembly speaker Asad Qaiser said PTI disassociated itself from the decision.
Separately, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman rejected the move. He described the board as a mechanism to seize Palestinian land and resources. He said Pakistan’s inclusion was unacceptable.
Hafiz Naeem said Pakistan’s armed forces should not be deployed to Gaza. He said Pakistan could not support any arrangement undermining Palestinian sovereignty.
Responding to criticism, Federal Minister Tariq Fazal Chaudhry defended the decision. He said the government acted in national interest and Muslim Ummah interests. He said Pakistan always supported Kashmir and Palestine.
The Minister said Pakistan joined the board to support Gaza’s reconstruction and a permanent ceasefire. He urged unity and called for consensus over confrontation.