ISLAMABAD, January 07, 2013: Starting an hour and 24 minutes late, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the anti-democratic forces and calling upon the Election Commission of Pakistan to continue its preparation for next general elections without fear.
The sitting was marked by low attendance as only 31 members were present at the outset and 26 at the time of adjournment. The Speaker adjourned the sitting when a member pointed out the quorum and in spite of ringing of bells, the 1/4th of the total members required to continue the proceeding were not present.
The Speaker chaired the entire sitting. The Chief Minister, the Leader of the Opposition, the relevant minister during question hour and the parliamentary leaders of PMLN, PML and PPS did not attend the sitting.
Members’ participation in House proceedings
- The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly met for two hours and 31 minutes.
- The sitting started at 1624 hours against the scheduled starting time of 1500 hours, witnessing a delay of an hour and 24 minutes. There was a 39-minute prayer break.
- The Speaker presided over the entire sitting. The Deputy Speaker was not present.
- The Chief Minister and the Leader of the House did not attend the sitting.
- The parliamentary leader of only PPPP was present while those of PMLN, PML and PPPS remained absent.
- Only 31 members (25% of the total membership) were present at the outset, while 26 (21%) were there at the time of adjournment. A maximum of 36 members (29%) were present during a point of sitting.
- Two minority members attended the sitting.
Representation and Responsiveness
- Twelve starred questions (requiring oral responses) appearing on the agenda were raised and responded to by the relevant ministries. Additionally, 11 supplementary questions were asked.
Output
- The house unanimously adopted a resolution condemning anti-democratic forces and calling upon the democratic parties to unite against the conspiracies against democracy. It further called upon the Election Commission of Pakistan to continue its preparation for the next general election without fear.
Order and institutionalization
- Eight points of order (POs) were raised which consumed 25 minutes of the sitting time.
- The quorum was pointed out by a member followed by ringing of bells for two minutes and subsequently the adjournment of sitting when the required 1/4th members were not present.
Transparency
- Agenda of the Day were available to the legislators, observers and others.
- Information on Members’ attendance was unavailable to observers and the public.
The Daily Factsheet is based on direct observation of KP Assembly proceedings conducted by PAIMAN Alumni Trust, a member organization of FAFEN