28th Session: Lawmakers again fail to discuss agenda

Moonis Elahi’s production dominates house business.

LAHORE:

Punjab Assembly (PA) Speaker Rana Iqbal refused, on Friday, to issue a production order for MPA Moonis Elahi even though the opposition benches vociferously demanded for it.

The brief session also saw PPP MPAs from Mandi Bahauddin walk out of the house in protest over the non-allocation of funds for development work in that district.

The 28th PA session, convened on the opposition’s requisition, started two hours late and was prorogued without any discussion on the opposition’s set agenda.

Rising on a point of order, PML-Q parliamentary leader Chaudhry Zaheeruddin Khan asked the speaker whether the National Assembly (NA) speaker had issued a production order for PML-N MPA Anjum Aqeel.

He asserted next that the federal government had set a precedence when the NA speaker had issued a production order for an opposition member. He demanded that the speaker issue a production order for Elahi.

Leader of the Opposition Raja Riaz seconded Khan’s demand saying that President Asif Ali Zardari, the prime minister and the speaker of the National Assembly, were all aware of Aqeel’s involvement in corruption but had agreed to issuance of a production order for his appearance in the National Assembly.

Law Minister Rana Sanaullah said the Rules of Procedure prohibited the speaker from issuing a production order for Elahi. He said during PML-Q’s term in office there had been a suggestion to change the rules but the PML-Q had not agreed.  Sanaullah said the National Assembly had amended its rules and hence its speaker could issue a production order. The law minister admitted that Aqeel was charged with corruption and added that every corrupt person in the country had been facilitated by Zardari. Khan told Sanaullah that Rule 235 of the Rules of Procedure enabled the speaker to issue a production order.

Speaker Iqbal told Khan to first empower him through an amendment to the rules and then he would issue a production order.

PPP Parliamentary Leader in PA Maj (retd) Zulfiqar Gondal said that the government had issued details of the Annual Development Programme for all districts but had missed Mandi Bahauddin. He said that the government had allocated funds for all districts except for Mandi Bahauddin as all the MPAs from that district were from PPP.

He said that if the Punjab government did not care for the district it should be placed in Sindh. He said that if the government did not release the funds then he and the other MPAs from the district would start a civil disobedience movement. He and the other MPAs then walked out from the session.

PPP MPA Sajida Mir demanded that development funds be allocated for women. MPA Asghar Ali Monda pointed out the quorum at this point and the speaker prorogued the session without discussion on the opposition’s agenda. Speaking to the media outside the assembly Raja Riaz urged the prime minister to stop development funds for PML-N MNAs just as Punjab government was denying funds to PPP MPAs.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 23^rd, 2011.