ISLAMABAD: National Assembly Speaker Asad Qaiser, who faced difficulty in running the house smoothly after the prime minister’s election due to a noisy protest by the opposition, on Monday met former speakers and cabinet members concerned to discuss the ways and means to run the proceedings of the lower house of parliament amicably.

The meeting was attended by former speakers Syed Fakhar Imam and Dr Fehmida Mirza, who has now joined the cabinet as minister for inter-provincial coordination, Law and Justice Minister Barrister Dr Farogh Naseem, Adviser to the PM on Parliamentary Affairs Dr Babar Awan, senior officers of the National Assembly secretariat and parliamentary affairs division.

Talking to the participants, Mr Qaiser said consultation with all stakeholders was necessary to run the house proceedings in a cordial way, says an official handout.

“We will consult legal experts, besides leaders of the parliamentary parties to strengthen parliament,” he said, adding that “it is the responsibility of every member to work for boosting the respect of parliament whether he belongs to the government or opposition.”

Talking to the former speakers, Mr Qaiser said they were experienced members of the house and had alot of skills to run the proceedings, adding that he would like to benefit from their experience.

The speaker said the nation had a lot of expectations from parliament and hoped it would come up to their expectations.

The two former speakers suggested that for smooth running of proceedings, opposition members should be given maximum opportunity to speak.

The speaker said standing committees were important organs of the house and it would be his utmost struggle to complete elections of chairpersons of the committees to make them functional as soon as possible.

The participants of meeting assured Mr Qaiser of their cooperation and assistance to help him look after the affairs of the house.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2018