ISLAMABAD, March 7, 2017: The Punjab Assembly was adjourned due to lack of quorum without addressing Private Members’ bills and resolutions on Tuesday, observes Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).
Following are some key observations of the House proceedings during second sitting of 27th session:
Members’ Participation
- The Punjab Assembly met for two hours and seven minutes.
- The sitting started at 1130 hours against the scheduled time of 1000 hours.
- The Speaker presided over the entire sitting while the Deputy Speaker was not present.
- The Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition did not attend the sitting.
- Thirteen lawmakers (3%) were present at the outset and 69 (18%) at the adjournment of sitting.
- The parliamentary leaders of PTI and JI attended the sitting.
- Seven minority members were present.
Output
- The House adopted two supplementary resolutions, condemning the recent incidents of terrorism in the country and commending the government for holding Pakistan Super League (PSL) cricket final in Pakistan.
- The House witnessed presentation of a report of the Standing Committee of Excise and Taxation on a Starred Question.
- The House did not take up Private Members’ bills and resolutions appearing on the agenda due to lack of quorum.
Representation and Responsiveness
- As many as 14 out of 18 Starred Questions were responded to by the government during Question Hour while one question was disposed of due to the absence of mover. The lawmakers also asked 29 Supplementary Questions.
- The House deferred two Adjournment Motions moved by PTI lawmakers.
Order and Institutionalization
- The lawmakers spoke on three Points of Order consuming five minutes of the proceedings.
- PTI lawmakers protested over mismanagement in the sale of PSL final tickets.
- The House was adjourned due to lack of quorum pointed out by an Independent lawmaker.
Transparency
- ‘Orders of the Day’ was available to the legislators, observers and public.
- Information on Members’ attendance is available on Punjab Assembly’s website.
The daily factsheet is based on direct observation of the Punjab Assembly proceedings conducted by PATTAN Development Organization – a member organization of FAFEN. Errors and omissions are regretted.