Opposition to contest Unification Bloc status

Opposition decides to block Unification Bloc leader Dr Tahir Ali Javed from attending business advisory meeting.

LAHORE:

The major opposition parties in the Punjab Assembly (PA) have decided to oppose any move for participation of Unification Bloc leader Dr Tahir Ali Javed in the business advisory meeting scheduled for March 11.

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid-i-Azam (PML-Q) have decided to give the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Unification Bloc a tough time and blocking the participation of Dr Javed in the meeting is part of that plan.

PA Speaker Rana Iqbal Khan has called the business advisory meeting where all the parliamentary leaders of various political parties would discuss the business of the house. These meetings are usually called to discuss salient issues ahead of a PA session and to agree on the presentation of bills.

PPP’s Raja Riaz told The Express Tribune that the PPP and the PML-Q would strongly oppose the participation of Dr Javed in the meeting. The PPP, he said, sees Dr Javed as a turncoat. He said the party he claims to be leading has not been recognised in the Assembly record. Riaz said Dr Javed’s participation would add to the government’s miseries. If the speaker, he added, failed to convince parliamentary leaders on running the business of the house then how might he run a businesslike assembly session?

An official in the Assembly’ secretariat told The Express Tribune that it was the speaker’s prerogative to call any parliamentary leader to the business advisory meeting.

Chaudhry Zaheeruddin Khan, the former leader of the opposition, and the PPP’s Syed Abdul Qadir Gillani have not resigned from the chair of the Public Accounts Committees (PACs) I & II respectively.

A source in the PPP said that the party wanted Khan to continue as PAC I chairman because it did not think it could elect Raja Riaz to the post if Khan resigned.

A few months ago, Gillani had announced his intent to resign from the post but has not submitted a resignation so far. The same source claims that Gillani will continue in the post as the PPP wanted to give the PML-N a run for its money.

The PML-N, the source said, could not remove either of the men as they were both elected to the posts not appointed by the government.

Under the Charter of Democracy, the chairmanship of PAC I had to be given to the leader of the opposition and the PPP-PML-N coalition had allowed the leaders of opposition in the National and Provincial Assemblies to be easily elected.

The main function of the PACs under 176 Rules of Procedure of Assembly is to examine the statements of accounts showing the income and expenditure of state corporations, trading and manufacturing schemes, concerns and projects together with the balance sheets and statements of profit and loss.

The committees also examine the statements of accounts showing the income and expenditure of autonomous and semi-autonomous bodies the audit of which may be conducted by the Auditor-General under the directions of the Governor or under any law; and consider the report of the Auditor-General in case where the Governor may have required him to conduct the audit of any receipts or to examine the accounts of stores and stocks.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 10^th, 2011.