ISLAMABAD: It was somehow fitting that MNAs should choose one of the most taxing sittings of the National Assembly to petition the government for a salary raise.

In between passing a constitutional amendment and going back and forth over the modalities of a parliamentary committee on the Panamagate investigation, PML-N MNA Chaudhry Mahmood Bashir Virk tabled a standing committee report on the salary and allowances of the NA speaker/Senate chairman, deputy speaker/deputy chairman and members of both houses of parliament.

Members of the Standing Committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges had recommended that the salaries of members of parliament should be brought at par with the maximum remuneration given to a federal secretary in grade 22, as well as enhancing the allowances and medical facilities available to members.

The committee also approved two draft bills, seeking to amend the Chairman and the Speaker (Salaries, Allowances and Privileges) Act, 1975, and the Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) Act, 1974.

Speaker suspends membership of committee chairman for misbehaving with NA staff

Under the proposed amendments, lawmakers have asked that their current salary be raised from around Rs36,000 to Rs200,000 – an increase of 450pc – along with a sizeable increase in their travel allowances and an increase in the amount of business class air tickets available to them and their family members.

When the report was tabled, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq asked members of the house to vote ‘Aye’ three times, chiefly for the benefit of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who was also in the house at the time.

“Mr Dar, I think this matter is related to you,” he remarked before the report was adopted.

Explaining the purpose of the proposed amendments, Mr Virk told Dawn that members of parliament enjoyed a high standing in society, “so they should get a pay that reflects this standing”.

He said that the salary of an MNA or senator, including basic allowances, was around Rs60,000, adding that this was not sufficient to meet most members’ costs.

“Members of parliament have constituency duties, travel requirements and other business to attend to, which cannot be met in the meagre sum that is currently paid to them. MNAs also have the right to live with dignity,” he said.

MNA suspended

The agenda for the day mentioned Mr Virk as the acting chairman of the standing committee in question.

He had to table the report because disciplinary action was being taken against the erstwhile chairman of the committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges, PML-N MNA Chaudhry Asadur Rehman.

Just as proceedings began on Monday, a member drew the speaker’s attention to an incident that transpired a day earlier, where Mr Rehman had misbehaved with the NA secretary.

“Everyone has their dignity, whether they are members or NA secretariat staff. [The member] misbehaved with the NA secretary and special secretary; tearing up papers and throwing them in their faces. I have received a letter from the secretariat staff, and this is apparently not the first such incident involving this member,” the speaker observed.

The house also adopted a motion, naming Chaudhry Asadur Rehman and suspending him from the service of the assembly for the remainder of this session, which is expected to end today (Friday).

The motion stated that Mr Rehman tore up an official communication sent to him from the speaker and threw the pieces on the faces of the table officers, shouted at them and threatened them.

“He disregarded the authority of the speaker, abused the directions issued... and wilfully obstructed the business of the assembly by doing the said acts in the house in my presence,” the motion from the speaker stated.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2016