ISLAMABAD, June 20, 2013: As many as eight Senators took part in the debate on budget during the seventh sitting of the 95th session on Thursday, reports the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) in its daily factsheet based on direct observation of the proceedings.
Starting 32 minutes late, the sitting lasted two hours and 23 minutes.
Three Senators of PPPP and one each of PMLN, BNPA, JUIF, ANP along with an independent Senator debated budget.
The Standing Committee on Defence and Defence Production presented its report before the House.
The Chairman chaired the entire sitting. Nine Senators were present at the outset while 15 were there when the sitting adjourned. A maximum of 32 Senators were present at one point of sitting.
Following are some key observations of the parliamentary business:
Members’ Participation in House Proceedings
- Senate met for two hours and 23 minutes.
- The sitting started at 1102 hours against the scheduled starting time of 1030 hours, witnessing a delay of 32 minutes.
- The Chairman chaired the entire sitting. The Deputy Chairman was not present.
- The Leader of the House attended the sitting while the Leader of the Opposition was not present.
- The parliamentary leaders of ANP, JUIF and MQM were present while those of PML and BNPA remained absent. The Senators of PMLF and NP – the single member parties in the Senate – also attended the sitting.
- The Federal Minister for Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs, Statistics and Privatization attended the sitting for 20 minutes.
- Nine Senators were present at the outset while 15 were there at the time of adjournment. A maximum of 32 Senators were present at one point of sitting.
- Three minority Senators attended the sitting.
- Three Senators applied for leave.
Representation and Responsiveness
- Eight Senators – three of PPPP and one each of PMLN, BNPA, JUIF, ANP and an Independent member – shared their views about budget for an hour and 45 minutes.
Output
- The Standing Committee on Defence and Defence Production presented its report before the House.
Order and Institutionalization
- Eight points of order consumed 30 minutes of the sitting time.
- PPPP and PML jointly staged a five-minute token walkout over increase in the electricity tariff.
Transparency
- ‘Orders of the Day’ was available to the legislators, observers and others.
- Information on senators’ attendance was unavailable to observers and the public.
The Daily Factsheet is based on direct observation of the Senate proceedings conducted by Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives (CPDI), a member organization of FAFEN