Sindh Assembly prepares to bow out

Lawmakers deliver farewell speeches

KARACHI:

The farewell speeches started at Sindh Assembly on Thursday that is likely to be dissolved today (Friday) after Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah would send a summary to the Sindh governor for it.

The first session of the assembly was started on August 13, 2018 with elected members who took oath following general elections.

Officials in the Sindh government said that the actual date of assembly dissolution is August 12, but it would be dissolved a day before it.

“Governor on the advice of CM may sign the summary till midnight today,” sources privy to the development said.

During the session, Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani gave the floor to the opposition and treasury members for the farewell speeches announcing that Friday would be the last day and members should wind up their speeches sharing five years’ of their experience.

“After the last sitting, we will have a photo session before lunch with you,” he said.

The treasury members applauded the Sindh government and performance of the assembly while some opposition members cried foul for not giving them a chance to pass their private bills and allocate development budget for their constituencies.

As many as 20 lawmakers from both sides of the aisle delivered farewell speeches in the House.

Sharmila Faruqui of PPP while applauding the services of the assembly’s performance said, “The assembly set precedents in making the laws.” In her brief speech she referred to last year rains and floods and said CM Murad Ali Shah, his cabinet and ruling party members played pivotal role in their constituencies.

Mangla Sharma of the MQM-P thanked her party leadership for keeping her at the top in the priority list for women’s reserved seats.

She also suggested an amendment in the 1973 constitution so that any non-muslim could also be elected as Prime Minister of Pakistan.

Sachanand Lakhwani Sachal, PTI disgruntled MPA, held his party and leadership responsible for not giving them a chance to play a positive role in the legislative assembly and dictated them for point-scoring and political vendetta.

“I realised that we spent half of the time chanting slogans in the house,” he said.

Separately replying to a call attention notice moved by MQMP’s Mangla Sharma, Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah said that all private schools were bound to enroll 10 per cent deserving students but the department complained that many schools had not been complying with it.

He said that it was the responsibility of the government to provide education to a child aged five to 16 years as it was a constitutional binding that children should be given free education.

“It is a pity that these things have not been implemented,” he deplored.