ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs at its meeting on Thursday is set to take up a number of bills, including the one allowing issuance of vouchers equivalent to the value of 25 business class open return air tickets to the parliamentarians which can be utilised by their family members as well.

The bill titled “The Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) Amendment Bill, 2020” had been moved by Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan during the National Assembly’s session on March 9 last year.

The bill seeks amendment to Section 10 of the existing law which regulates free travel privilege of the members of the parliament. At present, the members are entitled to receive 25 business class open return air tickets of any Pakistani airline from the airport near their constituencies or in Islamabad in a year. In addition, vouchers of Rs300,000 for travelling by air or train by the parliamentarians as well as their family members are also provided during a year.

Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) Amendment Bill, 2020, was moved on March 9 last year

“The Statement of Object and Reasons” attached to the bills says that “there has been persistent demand by the parliamentarians to extend the utility of 25 air tickets to their family members as well”.

It says that the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Rules of Procedure has already made recommendations in this regard.

“Therefore, vouchers of equal value in lieu of admissible 25 business class open return air tickets are proposed to be issued to the members of the Parliament, which may be utilised by family members of the parliamentarian as well,” says the bill.

Through an amendment, it has been suggested that the members will now get the vouchers equivalent to the value of the business class return tickets from their constituencies to “any applicable airline route”, instead of Islamabad.

In the explanation given with the section, it is mentioned that “family means the spouse and children of a member and one other person”.

Besides this, the committee is also set to take up the bill seeking “open and identifiable ballot” during the Senate elections. The bill titled, “The Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2021” seeks amendments to sections 81, 122 and 185 of the Elections Act, 2017.

In February, the government had promulgated the ordinance for the use of an “open and identifiable ballot” in the Senate elections which were due to be held in March. The government had obtained the federal cabinet’s approval of the ordinance through circulation.

Several legal experts had termed the promulgation of the ordinance “presumptive legislation” since the Supreme Court by that time had not yet decided the presidential reference which the government had filed to seek interpretation of Article 226 of the Constitution and explore the possibility of open balloting for Senate elections.

In November last year, Prime Minister Imran Khan had vowed to hold elections for the upper house of parliament through “show of hands,” and not by secret ballot, to ensure transparency and eliminate “vote trading” and the practice of the use of money. The opposition, on the other hand, had alleged that the government was doing all this because it had no control and trust on its lawmakers and feared that they might not vote for the candidates backed by the ruling alliance. However, the government’s efforts to hold the elections through an open ballot failed when the Supreme Court declared that a constitutional amendment was required for this purpose.

The National Assembly’s committee will also discuss four other private members’ bills, including the one binding the political parties to nominate women on the reserved seats from each division of a province. The bill seeking an amendment to Section 104 of the Elections Act, 2017, had been introduced by MNA Riaz Fatyana of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI).

“It is the duty of the political parties to confirm the representation of women from all vicinity of Pakistan. The government of Pakistan is liable to take steps to ensure full participation of women in all spheres of national life as enshrined in Article 34 of the Constitution. For fulfillment of the constitutional obligation, it is necessary to make laws for equal opportunity of women of every region in the National Assembly of Pakistan,” reads the “Statement of Object and Reasons” attached to the bill.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is also required to brief the committee on the “ambiguity and discrepancies in the voters list” and the process of voters’ verification, according to the 11-point agenda issued for the meeting by the National Assembly Secretariat.

Published in Dawn, August 26th, 2021