LAHORE: The Punjab Assembly on Friday met for a brief but noisy session in which the arrest of Lahore Development Authority’s former director general Ahad Cheema was part of the debate.

As soon as the House met with a 50-minute delay, Nosheen Hamid of the opposition, on a point of order, wanted to know how and why Mr Cheema was promoted to next grade within a day of his arrest by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on corruption charges.

“What kind of message the government wants to convey, and to whom, by promoting an officer held on corruption charges,” she asked the Chair.

The Speaker tried to clarify that it was a federal subject which the Punjab government cannot answer. Rana Arshad of the Treasury also tried to explain that no officer could be promoted from Grade-19 to 20 overnight. It was rather a long drawn process which coincided with his arrest.

“Both these event are not interrelated as the opposition is trying to portray,” he said.

The opposition, however, was not convinced. Murad Ras and other members were of the opinion that both the federal and provincial governments, under the same political party, were protecting and promoting the corrupt. They’re doing so only to hide bigger scams which might also be linked to them, went the argument.

“The Punjab government fears he might turn approver and spill the beans,” he said when all his colleagues started protesting and raising anti-government slogans.

Amid the sloganeering, the Chair started the Question Hour in which the Labour and Human Resource, and the Auqaf and Religious Affairs departments were to be discussed.

He had hardly announced third question because first two movers were missing when Faiza Malik of the PPP, who was still protesting, pointed out quorum. “If the Chair does not want to listen to us, it should at least get its numbers right,” she said. The numbers, of course, were not right. Five minutes ringing of bells, followed by another 10, could not assemble the required number of (93 mandatory) members and the Chair adjourned the House till Monday afternoon.

The opposition, which left the House after pointing out quorum, continued its protest in the assembly compound, where Aslam Iqbal also addressed the media. “This government has a history of protecting and promoting corruption and corrupt officials. It is at it again in case of Ahad Cheema. Otherwise, how can the bureaucracy go on strike without the blessings of the government,” he said.

If this is not the case, he said, the government should take strict action against those who have gone on strike after locking their offices in the Civil Secretariat. “The government is covertly encouraging civil servants to go on strike, fearing arrest of more of them and chain of scandals in which the highest office of the province gets involved.”

Outside the protest of the Opposition continued for around an hour before the MPs dispersed and returned to the House for the parliamentary party meeting to discuss the issue.

Published in Dawn, February 24th, 2018