KARACHI: The opposition parties in the Sindh Assembly on Friday said that the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party was not serious in running the house as per its true spirit and the ongoing session was being prolonged only to facilitate certain PPP lawmakers who were in the custody of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Friday’s sitting, which resumed after a three-day hiatus and was later adjourned till Aug 5, began around two hours after the scheduled time.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s Khurrum Sher Zaman said the provincial government was not serious in running the assembly’s session.

The chair adjourns the session till Aug 5

“The treasury benches are not serious at all to run the house. They are more focused on the campaign for the by-election in Ghotki,” he said.

He said it was hard for the treasury benches to maintain quorum.

He claimed the Election Commission of Pakistan had taken notice of the involvement of PPP lawmakers in Ghotki by-election and that was the key cause of their lack of interest in running the house on merit.

Deputy Speaker Rehana Leghari said she too was not happy to see the lack of interest of many lawmakers in attending the session. However, she added, it was the responsibility of all the members sitting on either side of the aisle to maintain the quorum.

Leader of the Opposition in the Sindh Assembly Firdous Shamim Naqvi said the house was being run “merely to facilitate certain members in detention to attend the session”.

“There are certain lawmakers in the custody of NAB who are being facilitated through the production orders by the speaker to attend the session,” he said.

He said a hefty amount of money was being ‘wasted’ to facilitate some influential personalities to keep visiting the assembly building.

Illegal constructions in Liaquatabad

Earlier, the chair entertained a single calling-attention notice by Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s parliamentary party leader Kunwar Naveed Jameel before adjourning the sitting.

The mover raised the issue of commercial plazas being built on residential plots leased by the Karachi Development Authority. He asked the local government minister to inform the house about the measures taken by the Sindh Building Control Authority against such illegal buildings in Liaquatabad.

LG Minister Saeed Ghani said that the department had formed a committee to investigate the matter with full independence.

He invited the opposition lawmaker to furnish his proposals to resolve the issue. Besides, he added, the MQM-P member could also suggest the officers to be appointed in that regard.

He said the issue had not just affected Liaquatabad, but the entire metropolis. “Despite making all-out efforts, this problem could not be solved. For the same reason, we have formed a committee with special secretary of the LG department as its head,” he said.

Later, Mr Naqvi told reporters that the PTI would not join any standing committee of the provincial assembly until the issue regarding formation of the controversial Public Accounts Committee was resolved in the light of their long-standing demands.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2019