ISLAMABAD, February 07, 2012: The Sindh Assembly, which met for two hours and 45 minutes in the third sitting of the 40th session, passed the Sindh Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill 2013 and the Sindh High Density Development Board (Amendment) Bill 2011. The Education City Bill 2012 was deferred till February 13. The House adopted two resolutions – one to pay tribute to noted Sindhi Scholar Siraj ul Haq Memon and the other regarding compensation to the families of victims of Karsaz bomb blast and other terrorist incidents. PMLQ, NPP, and ANP lawmakers staged a walkout over the passage of the Sindh Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill 2013. They were of the view that this bill was a contempt of court as the issue of out of turn promotions was pending before the Supreme Court. The Deputy Speaker chaired the sitting for an hour and 45 minutes as the rest of the proceedings were chaired by a member of the Panel of Chairpersons.
Following are some key observations of the parliamentary business:
Members’ Participation in House Proceedings
- The Sindh Assembly met for two hours and 45 minutes.
- The sitting started at 1030 hours against the scheduled starting time of 0930 hours, witnessing the delay of an hour.
- The Deputy Speaker chaired the sitting for an hour and 45 minutes whereas the rest of the proceedings were chaired by a member of the Panel of Chairpersons.
- The Chief Minister attended the sitting for nine minutes.
- The parliamentary leaders of MQM, PMLF, NPP, PMLQ, PMLQ (F-B), and ANP were present.
- Only nine members were present at the start while 48 were there at the time of adjournment. A maximum of 68 members were present at one point of sitting.
- Four minority members were present.
- Two members applied for leave.
Representation and Responsiveness
- Seven of the 18 starred questions on the agenda were taken up and responded to by the relevant minister. Additionally 31 supplementary questions were asked.
- An adjournment motion regarding absence of basic civic amenities like electricity, water, gas and employment was raised and debated. It was raised by an NPP lawmaker and seven members spoke about it for 40 minutes.
Output
- The Sindh Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill 2013 and the Sindh High Density Development Board (Amendment) Bill 2011 were passed by the House.
- The Education City Bill 2012 was deferred till February 13, 2013.
- The House adopted two resolutions. One was to pay tribute to noted Sindhi Scholar Siraj ul Haq Memon while the other was regarding compensation to the families of victims of Karsaz bomb blast and other terrorist incidents.
Order and Institutionalization
- Two points of order were raised during the sitting.
- A five-minute protest and a 31-minute walkout were staged by PMLQ, NPP, and ANP lawmakers over the passage of the Sindh Civil Servants (Amendment) Bill 2013. They were of the view that this bill was a contempt of court as the issue of out of turn promotions was pending before the Supreme Court.
Transparency
- Orders of the Day were available to the legislators, observers and others.
The Daily Factsheet is based on direct observation of Sindh Assembly proceedings conducted by Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF), a member organization of FAFEN
