Absence of ministers irks Senate chairman

Directs secretariat to warn all ministers of punitive action if queries not responded to

ISLAMABAD: The Senate on Friday adopted a novel way to register its protest against what it called the apathy of ministers to take part in the proceedings of the house.

The Senate observed a 10-minute silence till a minister turned up and the proceedings started.

At the onset, the front row allocated for ministers was empty. There was no one to respond to the queries of the members.

This incensed Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani, who had been censuring the government time and again for not taking the business of house seriously.



He announced that the house would observe silence in protest till the ministers turn up. After 10 minutes, a minister showed up and the house started proceedings that lasted a few minutes.

The first question on the printed booklet of the question hour was related to Pakistan’s losses in the war against terrorism and the financial assistance it received from the United States. There was no reply in the booklet.

The only minister in the house was of education, Baligh-ur-Rehman, who tried to rescue the government by saying that there were estimates available but not the exact figures.



This irked Rabbani. He deferred the question for next proceedings with directions to the government to provide a correct answer.

The next question was related to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The Ministry of Planning, in its reply, said the question had been referred to the Ministry of Finance, which had also referred it to the cabinet division. This reply further enraged the chair.

Rabbani directed the secretariat to write letters to all ministers warning them of punitive action if they did not respond to the queries.



Similarly, the house will also pass a motion regarding contempt of parliament against those secretaries whose ministries do not reply to questions and it will be mentioned in the Annual Confidential Reports of the secretaries.

The house was prorogued sine die without transacting even a single item on the order of the day.

Only 11 (10%) lawmakers were present at the outset, while 26 (25%) at the adjournment of the sitting.