ISLAMABAD, March 9: Absenteeism hit the National Assembly hard on Monday under the nose of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, compounding a boycott by the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) over governor’s rule in Punjab.

The absence of most members and ministers from the house after a two-day weekend and before another day’s recess for Eid Miladun Nabi (peace be upon him) on Tuesday cut short the day’s proceedings to less than an hour.

Even the presence of the prime minister, who received a standing ovation for unexplained reasons from the poorly attended treasury benches on his arrival during the question hour, failed to improve attendance, which seemed much less than the required quorum of 86 in the 342-seat house.

The question hour lasted only about half an hour because of the absence of several members whose questions were on the agenda or of the relevant ministers who would have replied to them, after which the house was adjourned until 5pm on Wednesday without conducting any other business.

Members of the treasury benches usually greet the arrival of the prime minister by desk-thumping to carry on a tradition set by the pervious lower house. But they also stood up on Monday when Mr Gilani entered the lower house hours after making a brief speech in the Senate in which he said he was an opponent of governor’s rule.

Mr Gilani at one point chipped in to help out his Minister for Special Initiatives Lal Mohammad Khan in answering a question about the performance of the government’s “clean drinking water for all project”, but had no occasion for a speech because of the abrupt end of the sitting.

However, several members made the best use of the prime minister’s brief presence by almost besieging his desk apparently to get his signatures on files or papers carried by them.

PML-N members boycotted the house for the second day running to continue their protest against the imposition of governor’s rule in Punjab.

But there was no explanation about the absence of most ministers and ruling coalition members from the house, except for some who had sent leave applications for personal reason or official business outside the capital.

Only three items were on the agenda after the question hour -- two call-attention notices and the laying of reports of the fiscal policy statement and debt policy statement for 2008-09 as required by the Fiscal Responsibility and Debt Limitation Act, 2005 -- but none of them could be taken up.

Before any opposition member could point out a lack of quorum to embarrass the government, PPP member Nawab Yousuf Talpur, who was chairing the proceedings in the absence of both Speaker Fehmida Mirza and Deputy Speaker Faisal Karim Kundi, adjourned the house till Wednesday.
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