Government criticised for ignoring Senate proceedings

Senators on Wednesday staged a walkout from the House against the absence of the ruling party senators and ministers. Senator Zahid Khan of ANP pointed out lack of quorum and the proceedings of the Upper House were suspended for five minutes to complete the quorum. Only one member of the PML-N, Senator Hamza, was present in the House.
After five minutes, only few Senators turned up. The opposition members chanted 'shame, shame' to protest against the absence of the members from treasury benches. Deputy Chairman of the Senate Sabir Baloch again suspended the proceedings for 30 minutes but the quorum could not be completed. Later, the session was adjourned till Friday.
Earlier, speaking on the floor of the House, PPP's Senator Raza Rabbani said it was unfortunate that the government had completely ignored the Upper House. He said the government should have convened joint sitting of the parliament to devise a national strategy on terrorism instead of discussing it with parliamentary leaders in the Prime Minister's House.
"The parliament is the appropriate forum to formulate policies on terrorism but the government is completely ignoring it," he regretted. Rabbani said if the parliament was not taken into confidence on the recommendations prepared at the parliamentary leaders' conference, the whole effort to defeat terrorism might prove to be an exercise in futility.
ANP's Zahid Khan said that the PML-N government had put the parliament in abeyance as all the national policies were being formulated behind closed doors. He said that the government had convened the Senate session and it was its responsibility to complete the quorum. "If the ruling party cannot ensure presence of its Senators in the House, then the session should be prorogued," he demanded.
Zahid said that public money was being wasted, as the government was not interested in discussing important issues of national interest in the Senate. Senator Haji Adeel of ANP said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his ministers had totally ignored the Upper House and they did not consider Senate a part of the parliament. "We have saved this government from the onslaught of the protesting parties for the sake of democracy but we have the right to criticise it for its wrongdoings," he said. He said that the government and its ministers should mend its ways, otherwise it would be difficult for them to run the government.