ISLAMABAD, September 1, 2014: The longest session of the 14th National Assembly that witnessed 18 sittings was prorogued sine die on Monday after debating the prevailing political situation in the country, says the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).
Four lawmakers – two from PML-N and one each from PTI and JUI-F – took part in the debate on a motion under Rule 259 for an hour and two minutes.
The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition did not attend the sitting. Two PTI lawmakers including a female legislator attended the sitting while all MQM lawmakers remained absent.
Following are some key observations of the House proceedings:
Members’ Participation in the House Proceedings:
- The National Assembly met for an hour and 15 minutes.
- The sitting started at 1740 hours against the scheduled time of 1700 hours, witnessing a delay of 40 minutes.
- The Speaker presided over the entire sitting while the Deputy Speaker was also present.
- The Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition did not attend the sitting.
- The parliamentary leaders of JI and APML attended the sitting.
- Forty lawmakers (12% of the total membership) were present at the outset while 98 (29%) at the adjournment of the sitting. A maximum of 112 (33%) members were observed to be present at one point during the sitting.
- Four minority members attended the sitting.
- Four members applied for leave.
Representation and Responsiveness
- Four lawmakers – two from PML-N and one each from PTI and JUI-F – took part in a debate on a motion under Rule 259 regarding the prevailing political situation in the country for an hour and two minutes.
Order and Institutionalization
- Lawmakers raised five points of order consuming eight minutes of the proceedings.
- There were no incidents of protests, walkouts and boycotts.
Transparency
- ‘Orders of the Day’ was available to the legislators, observers and others.
- Information on members’ attendance was not available to observers and the public.
This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of FAFEN and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union. This Daily Factsheet is based on direct observation of the National Assembly proceedings conducted by Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI); a member organization of FAFEN. Errors and omissions excepted
