Agreement across the aisle: Information minister slighted by treasury bench
Embarrassed by vote to not refer attention notice to standing committee.
PESHAWAR:
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani was left grappling during Tuesday’s assembly session when the treasury bench voted against referring an attention notice to the Standing Committee on Information despite his agreement.
ANP’s Syed Jaffer Shah raised the issue of restructuring the information department on a point of order, saying the idea had sent shockwaves among employees and the general public. Ghani assured him the government was not abolishing the department, rather “adjusting some employees”.
The minister had earlier said the government was trying to strengthen the department and a meeting to this effect had taken place between officials and the chief minister.
However, Jaffer was not satisfied and insisted on sending the matter to the relevant committee despite assurances from Ghani and Public Health Engineering Minister Shah Farman. He was also backed by ANP parliamentary leader Sardar Hussain Babak.
The speaker then put the matter to vote, but the move backfired for Mushtaq. The treasury bench voted against referring it to the standing committee with a massive show of hands. The information minister watched helplessly as the treasury benches, including Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, opposed the step Ghani had approved of. Beleaguered, Ghani did not raise his hand.
Subsequently, opposition lawmakers were up in arms against the government’s vote. In a last ditch effort to pacify, the information minister said he was not against sending the motion to the committee; the speaker put the matter to the floor again.
However, Shah Farman said there was no need for another vote as the information minister had given his nod of approval. Regardless, the floor voted another time with the same show of hands from the treasury benches, with only Ghani not opposing referring the matter.
Earlier, the minister opposed opening assembly standing committee proceedings to the media, saying it was established practice that information department staff covered them. Speaker Asad Qaiser also said coverage of standing committees’ proceedings was the responsibility of the information department.
The issue was raised by PML-N MPA Raja Faisal Zaman, who said the media should be allowed to cover proceedings. He failed to see the reasoning behind keeping reporters out, saying there were no ‘shady deals’ taking place during the meetings.
During the question hour, Minister for Education Muhammad Atif Khan informed the house that the government was going to advertise 7,000 posts for teachers next month, while 3,000 further vacancies would be announced later.
He said the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday vacated a stay order in the promotion case of teachers. He said that following the court’s decision, the government promoted about 2,500 teachers, while the remaining promotions would be completed in the coming days.
He said the government was also trying to sanction posts for schools which may have been constructed across the province. He added that 138 constructed schools were lying closed as the staff had not been sanctioned. Khan said that K-P government was also considering solar power for schools.
The session was in progress till the filing of this report.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 29th, 2014.
Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Information Minister Mushtaq Ahmed Ghani was left grappling during Tuesday’s assembly session when the treasury bench voted against referring an attention notice to the Standing Committee on Information despite his agreement.
ANP’s Syed Jaffer Shah raised the issue of restructuring the information department on a point of order, saying the idea had sent shockwaves among employees and the general public. Ghani assured him the government was not abolishing the department, rather “adjusting some employees”.
The minister had earlier said the government was trying to strengthen the department and a meeting to this effect had taken place between officials and the chief minister.
However, Jaffer was not satisfied and insisted on sending the matter to the relevant committee despite assurances from Ghani and Public Health Engineering Minister Shah Farman. He was also backed by ANP parliamentary leader Sardar Hussain Babak.
The speaker then put the matter to vote, but the move backfired for Mushtaq. The treasury bench voted against referring it to the standing committee with a massive show of hands. The information minister watched helplessly as the treasury benches, including Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, opposed the step Ghani had approved of. Beleaguered, Ghani did not raise his hand.
Subsequently, opposition lawmakers were up in arms against the government’s vote. In a last ditch effort to pacify, the information minister said he was not against sending the motion to the committee; the speaker put the matter to the floor again.
However, Shah Farman said there was no need for another vote as the information minister had given his nod of approval. Regardless, the floor voted another time with the same show of hands from the treasury benches, with only Ghani not opposing referring the matter.
Earlier, the minister opposed opening assembly standing committee proceedings to the media, saying it was established practice that information department staff covered them. Speaker Asad Qaiser also said coverage of standing committees’ proceedings was the responsibility of the information department.
The issue was raised by PML-N MPA Raja Faisal Zaman, who said the media should be allowed to cover proceedings. He failed to see the reasoning behind keeping reporters out, saying there were no ‘shady deals’ taking place during the meetings.
During the question hour, Minister for Education Muhammad Atif Khan informed the house that the government was going to advertise 7,000 posts for teachers next month, while 3,000 further vacancies would be announced later.
He said the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on Monday vacated a stay order in the promotion case of teachers. He said that following the court’s decision, the government promoted about 2,500 teachers, while the remaining promotions would be completed in the coming days.
He said the government was also trying to sanction posts for schools which may have been constructed across the province. He added that 138 constructed schools were lying closed as the staff had not been sanctioned. Khan said that K-P government was also considering solar power for schools.
The session was in progress till the filing of this report.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 29th, 2014.