In this Issue

The National Assembly of Pakistan

• Election Tribunal De-Seats Sardar Ayaz Sadiq as MNA
• Sardar Ayaz Sadiq’s Phone Call to Mr. Altaf Hussain: A Misuse of Power
• MQM Legislators Submit Resignations over Rangers Operation in Karachi
• Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference Cancelled
• Attendance of MNAs

The Senate of Pakistan

• Senate Website Revamped
• Reforms in Standing Committees

The Provincial Assembly of Balochistan

• No Speaker for Three Months

The Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

• Post of Deputy Speaker Remains Vacant
• Amendment to Ehtesab Commission Act
• Right to Information Law Not Amended despite Imran Khan’s Directives

The Provincial Assembly of Sindh

• Sindh Assembly Passes Resolutions Against the MQM Chief
• Dual Nationals may Contest in Local Government Elections

The National Assembly of Pakistan

Election Tribunal De-Seats Sardar Ayaz Sadiq as MNA

Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Speaker of the National Assembly de-seated from NA-122

The results of an Election Tribunal on the election petition No. 315, announced on August 22, 2015, de-seated the Sardar Ayaz Sadiq from his post of Member of the National Assembly resulting also in the loss of his Speakership of the National Assembly of Pakistan. Mr. Murtaza Javed Abbasi, MNA, (NA-18, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, PML-N), formerly the Deputy Speaker, subsequently assumed the post of Acting Speaker. Later, on August 26, 2015, an Election Tribunal announced its verdict in the petition filed by Mr. Jehangir Tareen against alleged rigging in NA-154, which led to the de-seating of Mr. Siddique Baloch, PML-N.

While the Tribunals have given their lawful verdicts, PILDAT believes that these decisions should have come within the mandated time of four months.¹

Sardar Ayaz Sadiq Phone Call to Mr. Altaf Hussain: A Misuse of Power

During a sitting on August 06, 2015, the then Speaker of the National Assembly, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, informed the House that he had spoken with MQM Chief, Mr. Altaf Hussain, over the telephone to request him to direct an MQM MNA to withdraw his motion to de-seat the 28 PTI legislators.

On April 22, 2015, due to the absence of PTI legislators from the Parliament over a 126-day protest against the alleged rigging in the General Elections 2013, Ms. Naeema Kishwar Khan, MNA, (NA-9, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, JUI-F), and Mr. Mohammad Salman Khan Baloch, MNA, (NA-239, Sindh, MQM), had submitted identical motions in the National Assembly of Pakistan to de-seat the PTI MNAs. This motion was submitted against Clause 2 of Article 64 of the Constitution, which states that the “House may declare the seat of a member vacant if, without leave of the House, he remains absent for forty consecutive days of its sittings.”² After Sardar Ayaz Sadiq informed the House of his call to Mr. Hussain, Ms. Khan, and Mr. Baloch, individually withdrew their motions to de-seat the MNAs.

This telephone call is a misuse of power by the Speaker of the National Assembly, who is meant to be a non-partisan figure. His job is to preside over the proceedings, not exert political influence. Any one of the 338 MNAs who are not required to be impartial could have called Mr. Altaf Hussain and persuaded him to ask Mr. Baloch to withdraw his motion. Sardar Sadiq’s action reflects poorly on the prestige of the office of the Speaker of the National Assembly. Though Sardar Ayaz Sadiq defended his actions for the “sake of Parliamentary traditions and democracy,”³ it is contended that his actions were in fact the opposite.

In a second highly unusual move, the Speaker expressed to the House, the regard held by the MQM Chief for the “jawans of Pakistani armed forces”⁴ in light of Mr. Hussain’s allegedly derogatory remarks against the Pakistan Armed Forces. Sardar Sadiq stated that the MQM Chief had requested him to convey these sentiments on his behalf. There were 24 representatives of the MQM in the National Assembly who could have conveyed Mr. Altaf Hussain’s sentiments to the Parliament. The Speaker, who is meant to neutral, had no business expressing the opinions of various politicians and thus adding his own legitimacy to them.

MQM Legislators Submit Resignations over Rangers Operation in Karachi

Mr. Farooq Sattar hands over his resignation to the Speaker

On August 12, 2015, 8 MQM Senators submitted their resignations from the Senate of Pakistan, 24 MNAs from the National Assembly, and 51 MPAs from the Provincial Assembly of Sindh, in response to the Rangers Operation in Karachi; a rather extreme step taken by the MQM legislators, as it is believed that the legislatures are the ideal platform for them to raise their concerns about the alleged targeting of their party workers.

In order to mend the situation, the Prime Minister directed Maulana Fazal ur Rehman, MNA, (NA-24, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, JUI-F), to hold talks with MQM legislators and arrive at a solution that would encourage them to withdraw. In the consequent talks, it was agreed that a Grievance Redressal Committee (GRC) would be created to determine whether the allegations that law enforcement agencies have been targeting MQM party workers have any merit. The MQM legislators stated that they would make a decision about withdrawing their resignations after the formation of said GRC.

As per the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a Member of Parliament “by writing under his hand addressed to the Speaker… resign his seat, and thereupon his seat shall be vacant.”⁵ The resignations also have to be “voluntary and genuine”⁶ and once the Speaker is satisfied that they are, he may inform the Assembly.

Given that the MQM legislators submitted their resignations in groups makes the genuineness of their resignations questionable, as it is certainly possible that some may have come under their influence of their fellow party members. Therefore, the Chairman of the Senate and the Speakers of both Assemblies may gauge from individual meetings with the MQM legislators if the resignations were voluntary. The Sindh Assembly Speaker, Agha Siraj Durrani, MPA (PS-9, Sindh, PPPP), indicated his decision to duly go through the process as per the Rules of Procedure and the Constitution before accepting the resignations. It must be mentioned here that 11 MQM MPAs were out of the country at the time of resignations and did not submit their resignations in person.

For the smooth continuation of Assembly business and the responsibility to the constituencies represented by these legislators, it is important that this matter be resolved quickly.

Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference Cancelled

On August 20, 2015, the National Assembly announced its decision to not host the 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in the aftermath of a teleconference between the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and the then Speaker of the National Assembly, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. The CPA had insisted upon inviting the Speaker of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, while based on Pakistan’s stance on Indian “occupation” over the region, the Speaker refused to extend this invitation. The situation culminated into the Speaker entirely cancelling the CPC.

Given the fact that resources had been utilized in arranging the Conference which was to take place in October 2015, the cancellation is not only an embarrassment to the country and its global image, but also highly irresponsible. It is baffling that if Pakistan’s agreement to host the 61st Conference was contingent upon not inviting the representative of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, why was this not made clear when the Speaker agreed to hold the CPC? The statements from the CPA and the Speaker’s Office also diverge as to whether the decision to cancel Pakistan as the host-country was taken by the Speaker’s Office or by the CPA. The Press Release issued by the Speaker’s Office on August 20, 2015 states that “The National Assembly of Pakistan regrets to announce its decision to pull back as host of the 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference.” While the Press Release issued by the CPA on August 21, 2015 states “The 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (61st CPC) and associated conferences… have been cancelled by the CPA International Executive Committee.”

Attendance of MNAs

An average of 199 MNAs were present per sitting during the 14 sittings of the 24th session of the National Assembly at 57% of the total. The Leader of the House and Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, MNA (NA-119, Punjab, PML-N), was present for only 1 sitting making his attendance 7% of the total sittings. Meanwhile, the Leader of the Opposition, Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah, MNA (NA-199, Sindh, PPPP) was present for 9 sittings at 64% of the total.

The Senate of Pakistan

The Senate Website Revamped

The Senate of Pakistan has made crucial reforms by revamping its website, and making it more open, transparent, and accessible. The website indeed, sets new and unprecedented standards of Parliamentary openness, transparency and public access in Pakistan. The new Senate Website aptly reflects the approach of new elected leadership of the Senate in making the Parliament more accessible and transparent for the citizens of Pakistan.

It is with pleasure and admiration that PILDAT notes some of the new additions to the website including:

PILDAT, which is a signatory to the worldwide Declaration on Parliamentary Openness ⁷ is pleased to note that the new Senate website fulfills a majority of global requirements in this regard.