Assembly session adjourned for lack of quorum
Lawmakers of the Sindh Assembly lashed out at companies such as the K-Electric, HESCO and SEPCO over long hours of load-shedding and overbilling across the province during the winters. PHOTO: ONLINE
The conspicuous absence of lawmakers incensed Sindh Assembly Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani who, in his exasperation, adjourned the session until Thursday, given the paucity of a single agenda being addressed.
The start of the session was marked by a mere presence of five members out of a total of 168 MPAs. "Today, being a private members day, I am disheartened by the evident lack of enthusiasm displayed by our members in attending this session. How can the proceedings be conducted when the benches remain barren?" he lamented, his gaze sweeping across the vacant seats.
Voicing further dismay, he added, "The session initiated two hours beyond the stipulated time, yet both the treasury and opposition benches remain devoid of members." With this, he somberly adjourned the session.
It's worth noting that the provincial assembly proceedings have been marred by scant attendance over the past several days. Remarkably, members of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have been absent since the May 9 incident, which unfolded in the aftermath of the arrest of Imran Khan.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 9th, 2023.