Parliamentary business: Opposition flays treasury benches over lack of interest

The opposition on Friday flayed the treasury benches in the Senate for, what it said, their lack of interest towards the Parliamentary business as hostility continued between both the sides in the Upper House of the Parliament.

Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani presided over the Senate session. Speaking at the floor of the house, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Parliamentary Leader Sherry Rehman said the federal ministers and bureaucracy have shown complete disregard to the sanctity of the Parliament.

"They are acting with total indifference as if the Senate does not matter at all. Only Parliamentary affairs minister is the one who is answering our questions on behalf of the government. No representative from other ministries, divisions and departments bothered to show up during the Senate session. It seems that the bureaucrats of the relevant ministries are not answerable to the ministers concerned.

The opposition called a requisition to discuss some of the most significant issues and to give voice to the concerns of the people who are suffering because of them but neither the ministers nor the federal secretaries care to be present in the houses to at least note down the concerns.

The sanctity of the Parliament is being violated at every step and needs to be restored. Every other session of the Parliament is marked by protests from the opposition over this outrageously undemocratic behaviour but the government is impervious to criticism, whether inside the Parliament or out on the streets," she said.

Leader of the House in Senate Shibli Faraz came down hard on the opposition for "defending corruption."

He said, "The opposition is defending the corruption under the pretext of democracy. The Parliamentary unity between government and opposition is not possible if the senators here try to defend their leaders and seek concessions for them who are implicated in serious corruption cases by the courts and NAB (National Accountability Bureau), using the forum of the Parliament.

If opposition expects the treasury benches that we would support them on this matter, that's not going to happen at all. Neither the PTI government created NAB nor did we frame its laws and our government has nothing to do with corruption cases against the opposition leaders," Faraz said while sharing views on the agenda item regarding alleged political victimisation of opposition leaders moved by Leader of the Opposition in Senate Raja Zafar-ul-Haq and other senators from opposition.

Faraz said the political leaders should work for the betterment of the country instead of weakening its institutions. He said previous governments destroyed the institutions and economy of the country. The Senate session was adjourned till Monday 3:30pm due to lack of quorum.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019