April 07, 2008	Monday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 29, 1429

KARACHI, April 6: Nisar Ahmad Khuhro, who has been technically elected unopposed as speaker of the Sindh Assembly while Shehla Raza has been unofficially elected unopposed as deputy speaker, stated that efforts would be made to find solutions in the house rather than on the streets.

He was talking to a group of journalists in the speaker’s chamber after the scrutiny of nomination papers on Sunday afternoon. He said all efforts would be made to take along all members of the house, whether they belonged to the PPP, MQM, PML-F, PML-Q or ANP, without any discrimination.

He said he would ask the treasury members to come on time to the house to avoid the allegations of coming late and going home after half an hour of the session.

“The people, who are facing a lot of hardships, have many expectations from the newly-elected house for mitigating their miseries, which could only be mitigated if good laws are made,” he said.

Mr Khuhro hoped that the new house would establish good traditions and pay full attention towards resolving problems of the people, keeping in mind “the great sacrifice of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.”

He thanked his workers for “the double hat trick” of electing him to the house since 1988 and the PPP leadership for selecting him for this august office. He was happy that “God has given me the opportunity to sit in the chair in the house on which Quaid-i-Azam had also sat.”

He said he considered the Sindh Assembly as the mother assembly of Pakistan as it is the house where, for the first time in the subcontinent, the Pakistan Resolution was adopted.

He added that the assembly had produced some good parliamentarians, including Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah, from whom he had learnt a lot.

“His command over the rules of procedure and expertise of meeting the challenges and taking decisions at the spur of the moment in delicate situations were high marks and we would strive to move forward keeping in view his performance,” he said.

Regarding Saturday’s unpleasant events, Mr Khuhro said what had happened should not have happened. “No doubt the crowd was overwhelmed by emotions, but there could have been other methods of expressing the sentiments.”

However, he said he would make every effort so that no such events recur in the future.

Deputy speaker

Ms Shehla Raza said that in absence of the speaker, she would make every effort to maintain the dignity and sanctity of the house.

She condemned the throwing of a lota in the house and termed it an “indecent incident,” adding that such an incident should not recur in the future.