Senate commemorates its 50-year journey

Upper house praised for maintaining balance in parliament

ISLAMABAD:

The Senate commemorated its 50 years of journey with a special ceremony, where the speakers praised the upper house of parliament for promoting national cohesion among federating units and protecting rights of the people.

Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani chaired the special commemorative session summoned to celebrate the golden jubilee of the Senate of Pakistan. It was attended by the current and former senators.

The Senate Hall was decorated with the national flag, the flag of the Senate and the friendly countries. The Chairman Senate formally welcomed all the provincial and national leaders, former and current senators along with other guests.

“The house depicts the picture of the whole of Pakistan,” he said. Later, a motion was carried unanimously to convert the house into the Committee of the Whole from time to time during the special commemorative session for the address of the guests.

Addressing the event, National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf said that being a house of the federation, the Senate was formed with the principle of 'chamber of continuity’. “Federalism is a setup most suited to countries with diversity,” he added.

Leader of the House in the Senate, Ishaq Dar underlined that the gathering of the national and provincial leadership showed the much-cherished unity of all federating units. "We must acknowledge the visionary leaders who opted for the Constitution of 1973.”

Senator Irfanul Haque Siddiqui of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) urged the house to consider lessening the “increased intrusions” in its jurisdiction from various quarters.

“Why this has been happening? The supremacy of the parliament and its sovereignty has to be restored. We have to take stock of ourselves and restore our depleting powers,” he stressed.

Aitzaz Ahsan of the Pakistan People Party (PPP) said that there was no political solution with the security agencies. He said “they are standing behind us today and they will be behind someone else tomorrow”, adding: “This is a matter of grave concern for us.”

Farhatullah Babar of the PPP condemned the violators of the Constitution in the past. However, he said those violating the Constitution did not dare to abrogate it because it was a complete document having complete guidelines for a democratic Pakistan.

Speaking on the occasion, Senator Abida Azeem said that there was less representation of the women in the upper house that needed to be improved. Senator Anwarul Haq Kakar said there was the need for looking into “our past and foresee our future”.

Former senator Raja Zafarul Haq suggested that there was room for increasing the powers of the upper house in the financial matters of the country as at present only the National Assembly could approve the budget.

Former Awami National Party (ANP) senator Ilyas Bilour urged the political leadership to demonstrate political wisdom at this critical juncture and sit together to evolve a joint strategy to bring the country out of the current economic crisis.

Former Senate deputy chairman Mir Jan Muhammad Jamali suggested a direct election of the Senate of Pakistan. He called for more financial powers and authority for the upper house to serve the country in a better way.

In his address, Senator Danesh Kumar demanded more seats for minorities. He also appealed to all political leaders to shun their differences for Pakistan and contribute together to resolve the issues.

Senator Farooq H Naek said that the Senate was a platform to protect the rights of the people by maintaining balance in parliament. “We must acknowledge challenges lying ahead and we need to work together beyond party politics,” he added.

(APP WITH INPUT FROM NEWS DESK)