KARACHI: Govt takes full advantage of opposition’s absence: Agenda disposed of, session prorogued
KARACHI, March 3: The Sindh Assembly on Friday set a new record by disposing of all the items on its agenda. The opposition did not attend the day’s proceedings to join in the protests against the publication of blasphemous sketches by European press.
Deputy Speaker Rahila Tiwana, who chaired the proceedings, announced the governor’s assent to two bills - the Ziauddin Medical University (Amendment) Bill-2003 and the Indus Institute of Higher Education Bill-2004.
The house deferred consideration of two motions for leave to withdraw a bill, seeking further amendment to the Sindh Local Government Ordinance-2001, and another bill moved for further amendment to the Societies Registration Act-1860 in its application to the province of Sindh.
Law Minister Chaudhry Iftikhar moved a motion seeking laying of five ordinances before the house. The move was allowed by the chair. The ordinances are: The Sindh Ordinance No. XV of 2005 to further amend the SLGO-2001; the Sindh Ordinance No. XVI of 2005 to further amend the Societies Registration Act-1860 in its application to Sindh; the Sindh Ordinance No. XVII of 2005 to repeal the Sindh Regional Plan Organization Act-1976; the Sindh Ordinance No. XVIII to further amend the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences Ordinance- 2001 and the Dow University of Health Sciences Act-2004; and the Sindh Ordinance No. I of 2006 to prohibit manufacturing, sale and use of black polythene bags, including those below 30 micron thickness, in Sindh.
The house referred consideration of six government bills to the respective House Committees and directed them to submit their reports to the house within one month. The bills are: A bill to amend the Removal from Service (Special Powers) Sindh Ordinance-2000; a bill to provide for the establishment of an institute in Karachi to be known as the Pakistan Institute of Management; a bill to provide for the establishment of an institute in Gambat to be known as the Gambat Institute of Medical Sciences; a bill to amend the Sindh Cotton Control Ordinance-1966; the Sindh Transfusion of Safe Blood (Amendment) Bill-2005; and the Sindh Health Institutions (Establishment and Management) Bill-2005.
The consideration of two government resolutions was also deferred. One of the two resolutions was regarding an amendment to the Seed Act-1976 which was moved by the law minister, and the other related to the disapproval of the Sindh Ordinance No. I of 2006, a notice for which was given by Ms Shazia Atta Mohammed Marri.
BLASPHEMY: Earlier, the house reassembled at 10am and resumed the debate on the government’s resolution on the issue of blasphemous sketches.
The resolution had been presented by Leader of the House Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim and nine other treasury members in the previous sitting.
It condemned the attitude of the countries where certain newspapers has published the blasphemous sketches. It noted that despite strong protests by Muslims around the world, they neither apologized nor refrained from committing such act.
Syed Sardar Ahmed, Irfanullah Khan Marwat, Sardar Nadir Akmal Leghari, Chaudhry Iftikhar Ahmed, Rajvir Singh, Syed Murad Ali Shah, Mohammed Hussain, Poonjo Mal and Jam Madad Ali spoke on the resolution, which was adopted by the house.
Speaking on a point of order, Irfanullah Khan Marwat pointed out that despite the fact that the current session was a requisitioned one, the opposition did not turn up to take part in the discussion on this important issue. He also pointed out that many of the opposition members had stayed away from the last proceedings also.
MOTIONS: The house also allowed a one-month extension in the date for the submission of report by the House Committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges. In this regard, Planning Minister Shoaib Ahmed Bukhari moved a motion which was put before the house and carried.
The reports were to be submitted in respect of 14 privilege motions tabled by Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, Murad Ali Shah, Mir Mohammed Hassan Talpur, Ali Nawaz Shah, Asif Ali Shah, Hafiz Mohammed Naeem, Ghulam Qadir Chandio, Ms Humera Alwani, Abdul Sattar Ansari, Mohammed Yunus Barai and Dr Nasrullah Baloch.
The house, on the law minister’s motion, deferred consideration of a government resolution regarding legislation on protection of plant breeders’ rights to next session.
It extended the date by one month for presenting report by the special committee on four different motions.
NOMINATIONS: The house also nominated Rajvir Singh and Aslam Pervez to the Railway Advisory Committee, Karachi, for a period of three years.
Naila Inam was nominated to the Pakistan Nursing Council, Islamabad; Dr Saghir Ahmed to the Standing Committee on Finance vice late MPA Abdullah Murad; Nishat Mohammed Zia to the Standing Committee on Finance vice late MPA Dr Ali Bin Hamid; Abdul Quddoos to the Standing Committee on Services and Information, Land Utilization and Media Development vice Kanwar Naveed Jameel; and Murad Ali Shah to the Standing Committee on Food and Agriculture vice Abdul Haq alias Dost Mohammed Bhurt.
Nomination of two members to the Standing Committees on Local Government and one member to the Standing Committee on Finance was deferred.
The house also deferred till next session the grant of extension in the date for presentation of the report by Standing Committee on Education regarding Shazia Marri’s motion on an assembly question.
PROROGUED: The requisition session of the Sindh Assembly was prorogued by Deputy Speaker Rahila Tiwana, who remarked that the opposition was not interested in the business of the house.—APP
