Enraged speaker left seeking answers in session

Khan refers 20 questions related to Colonies Department to committee concerned

LAHORE: Punjab Assembly Speaker Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan referred 20 questions related to the Colonies Department to the committee concerned and ordered that answers be submitted within 20 days.

One of the queries had been pending since 2013 and this enraged the speaker no end. The opposition, taking the iron first approach to the treasury benches, was in up in arms over the negligence of the department. MPAs asked if it was a sign of good governance that a question asked in 2013 had no answer till the present day.



Some legislators of the treasury benches also supported the stance of the opposition, saying these circumstances were a disgrace to the Punjab Assembly.

In fact, Thursday’s session was started with the term “it is regrettable” which was uttered by the speaker himself. The remark came after he learnt that questions remained pending with the Colonies department for an extended period of time. He added this violated a ruling of the Punjab Assembly that answers had to be given within a period of three months.

The speaker told Parliamentary Secretary Chaudhary Zahid Akram that there was very little to say as just two out of a total 22 queries had been answered. Akram replied that it was truly a matter of shame that no proper answer was given. He said some of the queries had been answered, but the replies were deemed as unsatisfactory.

Rana Muhammad Iqbal Khan ordered him to inform the chief secretary that proper answers had not been received.

Opposition leader Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed said that this was the fourth year these questions had been pending and it was a matter of great shame for the house that no reply was given. He sarcastically quipped that the example of “good governance’ could be easily determined from the fact that a question asked by Jamaat-e-Islami leader Dr Waseem Akhtar in 2013 was still pending till 2017. “No one bothers about assembly business,” he said. He urged the CM to attend the session to ensure that ministers and parliamentary secretaries worked properly.



Muhammad Arif Abbasi said the parliament secretary’s job was to take strict action against responsible people rather than sending questions back. Jamaat-e-Islami leader Dr Waseem Akhtar welcomed the ruling of the speaker and demanded strict action against those responsible. He added the answers were being deliberately withheld by the department to hide its corruption.

Minister for Zakat and Ushr Malik Nadeem Kamran also expressed his dismay over the situation, adding was not only a concern for the opposition and treasury, but the house in general. He said fully supported the concerns of the opposition leader. “It is history that almost all questions have been sent to the committee.”

Later, the replies to the two questions answered by the department were summoned by the speaker. However, it was determined that one of them was also referred to the committee due to a dissatisfactory answer, while the other was disposed of.

Later, the quorum was pointed out by Ehsan Riaz Fatyyana and the session was adjourned still 9am on Friday as the government could not show the required number of legislators.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 20^th, 2017.