ISLAMABAD: A report released by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) on Wednesday said that around a quarter (82 or 25 percent) of the members of the National Assembly (MNAs) did not attend any sitting during the National Assembly’s 19th session, which held three sittings between September 1 and September 5.
The prime minister did not attend any sitting, while the office of the Leader of the Opposition remained vacant during the session. On a positive note, four federal ministers, namely ministers for the Public Affairs Unit, Housing and Works, Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety, and Defence, attended all sittings. Similarly, the Minister of State for Railways, who also holds the additional charge of Head of the Prime Minister’s Delivery Unit, was present in every sitting.
The incumbent cabinet comprises the prime minister and 31 federal ministers, including 25 MNAs and six senators. Cabinet members from the Senate are not usually required to attend the Assembly’s session unless there’s an agenda item about their ministry. In addition to the federal ministers, as many as 11 Ministers of State, including 10 MNAs and one non-elected person, hold the office of Ministers of State, and 24 of the Parliamentary Secretaries
During the 19th session of the National Assembly, which spanned three sittings from September 1 to September 5, 2025, 111 members (34 percent) attended all sittings, while 82 members (25 percent) were absent for the entire session.
As many as 111 (34 percent) MNAs attended all of the sittings during the session. The second sitting had the highest number of MNAs (200 or 61 percent of the current membership) present during the session.
Among the cabinet members, four federal ministers and one state minister attended all the sittings.
The FAFEN report mentioned that, as in previous sessions, female members generally had higher attendance than their male counterparts.
The lowest attendance occurred during the third (last) sitting, with only 159 members (49 percent) present. During this session, a member of the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) pointed out the lack of quorum. In response, the speaker remarked that it was unfortunate for the quorum to be questioned during a discussion of such significant public importance, as members from Balochistan were seeking to address the flood issues. Nonetheless, a count was conducted, and the House was found to be in order.
Most legislators from the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), and JamiatUlama-e-Islam Pakistan (JUIP) attended more than one sitting. The sole representatives of the Majlis-e-Wahdat-ulMuslimeen Pakistan (MWMP) and the National Party (NP) achieved full attendance. Members from the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) also attended more than one sitting.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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