Opposition delays long march to Islamabad due to OIC foreign ministers’ meeting

Pakistani opposition leaders, Shahbaz Sharif (L), Asif Ali Zardari (C), former President and leader of Pakistan Peoples Party, and Fazlur Rehman (R), head of JUI-F, gesture during a press conference in Islamabad on March 8, 2022. (AFP)

• Opposition leaders had earlier called supporters to march to the capital starting March 23
• Islamabad is hosting the 48th OIC Council of Foreign Ministers on March 22-23

ISLAMABAD: An alliance of opposition parties has called on its supporters to delay a “long march” to the capital due to the presence of foreign ministers of Islamic countries in Islamabad next week for a meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC).
On Monday, Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), who also heads the Pakistan Democratic Movement, an opposition alliance against Prime Minister Imran Khan, had asked supporters to embark on a long march to the capital on March 23.
On Tuesday, however, Rehman asked opposition supporters to enter the capital on the evening of Friday, March 25, instead of March 24.
“We have great respect for Muslim countries and do not want to create any problems for the foreign dignitaries,” the politician told reporters,  referring to Islamabad hosting the 48th Organization of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers meeting on March 22-23 for which at least 46 OIC foreign ministers have confirmed participation.
The opposition long march call came days after PM Khan announced a rally in Islamabad on March 27 as a show of force by his government ahead of a parliamentary vote on a no-confidence motion filed against him by the opposition in parliament last Tuesday. The date for the vote has not yet been set. First the speaker of the national assembly must convene a session where the motion can be tabled.
The opposition requires at least 172 votes in the 342-member National Assembly to topple Khan’s government. The current party position in the lower house of parliament shows the opposition collectively has 162 members while the government enjoys the support of 179 lawmakers, including its coalition partners.
Opposition parties say they have the required numbers to win the no trust vote as they struggle to convince the government’s allied parties to leave the coalition.