Punjab Assembly: Law makers condemn assassination of Bhutto

Fertiliser and sugar cane growers on the agenda, again.


Express December 26, 2011

LAHORE:


The Punjab Assembly (PA) on Monday unanimously approved a PPP-sponsored resolution condemning the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and roundly lauded her role as a champion of democracy.


The resolution was moved by PPP’s deputy parliamentary leader Shaukat Basra on the eve of Bhutto’s fourth death anniversary.

The house also debated the shortage of fertiliser and the problems of sugarcane growers.

However, the debate hardly went on for an hour and the session came to an abrupt end when Samina Khawar Hayat of PML-Q pointed out the quorum. Law Minister Rana Sanaullah walked up to the speaker’s pulpit and said the treasury did not have enough members present so the session would best be postponed.

The fertiliser and sugar cane farmers’ issues had been made part of the agenda on the request of opposition members led by Hasan Murtaza.

However, when opposition members Murtaza, Ehsanul Haq Naulatia and Seemal Kamran had finished speaking, Hayat pointed out the quorum.

The bells rang for the mandatory five minutes before the speaker seeing only a handful of members in the chambers postponed the proceedings till Tuesday (today).

PPP’s Naulatia said that the country’s fertiliser consumption of 65,000 tons was matched by production capacity.

He asked why then there was a shortage of fertiliser. He answered his own question saying distribution mechanisms were poor, there was gas loadshedding and an ineffective monitoring and control system. He said he was aware that this was the responsibility of the federal government but this did not make it easier on the farmers.

Naulatia said that the current shortage was artificial as black marketers in collusion with the National Fertiliser Marketing Limited (NFML) were reaping unfair profits. He called for an effective distribution network and an end to gas loadshedding. Naulatia said that sugar cane farmers had not been paid by the mills for up to three years.

The middlemen, he said, were offering cash to farmers but buying their crop on a much lower price than the market rate.

Murtaza also pointed out the black marketing of fertilisers.

He lashed out at Punjab government, telling it to nab the culprits. He said the sugar mills’ cartel was ripping off farmers.

PML-N MPA Shahid Mehmood handed in his resignation from the Punjab Assembly.

As soon as Shaikh Alauddin started speaking, the quorum was pointed out and the session was adjourned.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27th, 2011.

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