PPPP urges government to revise census policy

Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) on Tuesday urged the government to revise its "illogical and unconstitutional" condition of having a Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC) for any person to be counted in upcoming census.
PPPP MNA Naveed Qamar said the government is isolating hundreds and thousands of people in the census, especially in rural areas of the country, who do not have their CNICs made from National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA). "The government should immediately revise its policy and doesn't make it compulsory to have CNICs to be counted in the census," he added.
Qamar said the government will leave out thousands of Pakistanis in the census if the condition of having the CNICs is not withdrawn. "The government is bound to leave out thousands of Pakistanis in rural areas of Sindh and Balochistan, especially in a bid to screen out Afghan and Burmese refugees," he added.
"We won't accept the census if the government proceeds ahead with the same policy," he said, "It seems like the PML-N has started pre-poll rigging right away."
After the census, some seats in national and provincial assemblies may increase and it appears as if the government is focusing only on these lines, he said.
He said that all Pakistanis should have equal rights in the country and the government should make sure that no citizen is left out in the census.
Speaking on a resolution about state-run Pakistan Television (PTV), PPPP MNA Shazia Marri said the performance of the national television has gone down and numerous cases of harassment have also been reported recently.
She said the new female entrants in the PTV are faced with numerous problems including harassment by male staff. "There is a need to clean up the national television of the mafia that harasses female staff," she remarked.
MQM member Saman Sultana Jafferi said the organisation of national television has been politicised over the time, resulting in poor performance.
PML-N member Tahira Aurangzeb said the private television channels are destroying fabric of the society by playing low-quality dramas.
PTI member Shafqat Mahmood urged the government to take necessary steps to improve performance of the PTV including training of the staff. "Nepotism and favouritism have become hallmarks of the PTV and the government should act to get rid of these menaces," he said.
He also pointed out that a recent inquiry committee constituted to investigate harassment cases in the PTV is found grilling the victims instead of the accused. "This is a test case for the government as there is a need to implement law against sexual harassment," he said.
The National Assembly referred eight private members' bills to committees, while rejecting the motions for leave to introduce seven other bills.
The lawmakers belonging to MQM, PML-N, JUI-F and Jamaat-e-Islami introduced the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Compulsory Solid Waste Management and Recycling Bill, 2017, the Health Insurance Scheme for Disabled Persons Bill, 2017, the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2017 (Amendment in Article 37), the Poisons (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Indus River System Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Pakistan Penal Code (Amendment) Bill, 2017 and the Legal Practitioners and Bar Councils (Amendment) Bill, 2017. The House referred these eight bills to relevant standing committees.
The House rejected the motions for leave to introduce the National Database and Registration Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Capital Development Authority (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2017 (Amendment in Article 156), the Pakistan Penal Code (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Prohibition of Smoking and Protection of Non-Smokers Health (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the National Commission for Child Rights Bill, 2017 and the Pakistan Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2017.
Likewise, the House deferred the introduction of the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2017 (Amendment in Article 37) and the Trade Organisations (Amendment) Bill, 2017.
The House could not take up the Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues (Amendment) Bill, 2017, the Compulsory Sewage Water Management and Reprocessing Bill, 2017, and the Political Parties Order (Amendment) Bill, 2013 due to absence of the movers.
The House deferred the consideration of the Compulsory Blood Test of the Relatives of Thalassaemia Patient Bill, 2014 till next private members' day.
The chairman Standing Committee on Law and Justice presented the reports of the committee on the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2015, the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2016 (Amendment in Article 92), the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2015, the Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Bill, 2015, the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2016, (Amendment in Article 11) and the Constitution (Amendment) Bill, 2015], (Amendment in Article 175). The House condoned the delay in presentation of these reports.
Moved by Minister for Law and Justice Zahid Hamid, the House approved a motion allowing the treasury to transact government business on private members' day. Following the motion, the chairman Standing Committee on Finance, Revenue, Economic Affairs, Statistics and Privatisation presented the report of the committee on the Companies Bill, 2016.