ISLAMABAD: Acting President Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday launched the Senate’s official mobile application, hailing it as a “digital transformation” for the upper House.
The development comes amidst a continued blackout of the Senate’s official live proceedings on state-run PTV and the Upper House’s YouTube channel.
For a long time, live coverage of the house, including speeches by treasury members, has not been aired on state-run PTV Parliament or the Senate’s YouTube channel. Edited proceedings are sometimes uploaded to YouTube a day later.
The issue has been raised in the house by both opposition and treasury members, but so far without result.
Addressing the launch ceremony as chief guest, Gilani said the app marked the beginning of a new era in the Senate’s digital journey since its establishment in 1973.
“This is not merely the launch of a mobile app, it is a move towards a new way of work and thought,” he said.
“Senate’s digital transformation is continuing with a renewed commitment to serve the people.”
The acting president said digitisation was not just about convenience but about enhancing institutional capacity and effectiveness. “The purpose of digital transformation is to save time, increase efficiency and eliminate unnecessary procedures,” he added.
Gilani noted that the Senate secretariat had already adopted the e-office system and that encouraging results had been seen. He said the mobile app was part of a broader digital transformation aimed at bringing parliament closer to the people.
“The app will help build a modern, effective and public-friendly upper house,” he said.
“Technology must be adopted not for the sake of novelty, but to make democracy more transparent, effective and accessible to the people.”
He said technology was playing a key role in strengthening the link between parliament and the public. The Senate’s website and social media platforms were already providing timely information on parliamentary activities, while digital platforms were also offering citizens opportunities to express opinions and helping counter misinformation, he added.
The acting president said the scope of digital archives was being expanded to make authentic parliamentary information more easily available to members, researchers and the public, which would increase transparency and strengthen trust in democratic institutions.
He urged senators to fully adopt the new technology for parliamentary duties and public outreach. He also commended the Senate secretary and the IT department for their efforts in developing the app.
The ceremony was attended by Senate Acting Chairman Syedal Khan, IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja, senators, senior officials and media representatives.
