NA’s next session: Ayaz Sadiq likely to be re-elected speaker

After his de-seating, govt did not call the NA session to avoid speaker’s election

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s next session is scheduled for the last week of this month. This will be the first session after the de-seating of parliament speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq by an election tribunal on August 22.  Sadiq has been reelected as MNA from the seat after a close competition on October 11 and is likely to resume his old position without any interruption.

After the de-seating of Sadiq, the government did not call the NA session in order to avoid election for the slot of speaker. Such an election becomes mandatory once the slot falls vacant, said an official in the parliament house. Now the election of speaker is expected on October 26, when Ayaz Sadiq will take oath as an MNA.

Read: Thin margin victory: PML-N reclaims NA-122

In 2013, Sadiq was elected speaker after he bagged 258 out of the 313 votes cast. The rival candidate from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Shaheryar Afridi, had managed only 31 votes while Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) SA Iqbal Qadri had secured only 23 votes.

“The ruling party is determined to get Sadiq reelected as the speaker with a thumping majority and has started campaigning,” said a senior party leader. As per the rules, Sadiq would take oath on October 26 as member of the house and then deputy speaker would announce elections for the speaker most probably on the same day.

Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) lawmaker Ejaz Jakhrani told The Express Tribune that so far his party had not decided anything with regard to the election for speaker. To a question, he said the session was not delayed because of Sadiq and it was the business advisory committee’s decision to set October 26 as date for the new session.

Read: PTI to take ‘proof of changes’ to ECP

Six important bills were lapsed because of delayed session of the lower house. These bills were passed by the Senate but lapsed subsequently once the 90-day time expired.

The PTI is in no mood to back Ayaz Sadiq as it claims that there were anomalies in the by-election this time again. But the PTI would also not be in a position to criticise the government for not convening the session in a timely manner.

Observers pointed out that the 15th session of the provincial assembly in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is still continuing for the last one year following the deputy speaker’s ouster.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 18^th, 2015.