Protection of Pakistan Ordinance presented in National Assembly

Government ally JUI-F protests against bill; MQM, FATA MNAs stage separate walk-outs


Azam Khan April 02, 2014
PPP’s Shazia Mari also moved a resolution against hike in prices of essential medicines by pharmaceutical companies. PHOTO: APP

ISLAMABAD: Despite resistance from the major opposition parties and some members of treasury benches, the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N)-led government finally presented the controversial Protection of Pakistan (Amendment) Ordinance 2014 in the lower house of the parliament.

Debate on the bill did not commence, however, because of at least two walk-outs and a vociferous protest by a government allied-party.

Walk outs

Wednesday saw the Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) boycott during Wednesday’s session of the National Assembly against what they term extra-judicial killings of their workers in Karachi by security forces. MQM MNA Asif Husnain alleged that some departments of the security forces have formed death squads to eliminate workers of his party.

Citing various incidents of mutilated bodies recovered from different areas of the metropolitan city, he warned: “Don’t create a Balochistan- and Bangladesh-like situation in Karachi.” His party then proceeded to boycotted proceedings.

Shah Gul Afridi, an MNA from the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) also spoke against the negligence of the government and said that nothing has been done for the tribal areas over the last eight months. All Fata MNAs then also proceeded to boycott proceedings, criticising Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for not giving them and their areas' issues any time or attention.

JUI-F protest

Rana Shamim Ahmad, chairperson of the NA standing committee on interior, presented the bill that was passed by the committee on Tuesday without developing consensus even with its main ally Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal (JUI-F) .

As soon as the government presented the bill for approval, JUI-F’s Maulana Mirzaman was the first lawmaker who stood up and said: “We are one of the ruling parties but we oppose this bill”, adding that “Some clauses of the bill are against the people of the country and we will oppose it until the government does not address his party’s concerns.”

The bill has been criticised by many observers and parliamentarians, who hold that the standing committee merely played with some words and has not incorporated any sort of critical input and no research work has been done to make it more appropriate and acceptable.

Increase in the prices of medicine

PPP’s Shazia Mari moved a resolution against hike in prices of essential medicines by pharmaceutical companies. PML-N's Sara Afzal Tarar confirmed that prices of some medicines were increased by the companies after they got a stay order from the court. But there is no increase in prices of essential and life saving medicines, she added. This issue is in the notice of the prime minister and a committee has been formed to conduct survey of markets, she said.

PPP says PML-N has reintroduced RPPs

Speaking on a point of order, PPP’s Nafisa Shah sought an explanation from the government on why controversial Rental Power Projects (RPPs) have been relaunched after renaming them. She said the projects, first launched by the PPP government, has been opposed tooth and nail by the PML-N which was in the opposition. She also pointed out that the PPP government had been taken to court on this project and serious charges had been leveled against it including corruption by ministers and even a prime minister. How, she asked, has this same project now been declared transparent.

She said her party and their allies, and all parliamentarians, want to know how the current federal minister for water and power—who spent most of his time in the courts during last five years against this project—prepared a summary and gave his approval for the project after renaming it as STIPP (Short-Term IPPs).

 

COMMENTS (1)

honest opinion | 9 years ago | Reply

There should be no law in which enforced disappearances by law enforcement agencies are given legal cover. The LEAs should present the suspect in front of the court immediately and then the court should give remand time.

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