NA session adjourned amid ongoing quorum woes

ISLAMABAD: Persistent quorum issues once again disrupted proceedings in the National Assembly on Friday, forcing the session to be adjourned without taking up the scheduled business.

At the outset of the National Assembly session, just prior to the Question-Hour, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) legislator Iqbal Afridi pointed out the quorum. After the count, the house was not found in order, and Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq adjourned the House for 20 minutes, and later on adjourned the proceedings till Monday evening.

Before the count was made, the speaker expressed his concerns and disappointment at the conduct of opposition members. He noted that a significant number of questions listed for today’s Question-Hour had been submitted by the opposition members. “However, instead of engaging in the proceedings, the opposition opted to walk out after pointing out the lack of quorum,” he added.

While commenting on the opposition’s walkout during discussion on the issue of canals, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq said 30 members had actively participated in the debate. Despite the significance of the matter, all opposition parties — with the exception of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam — chose to leave the House.

He highlighted that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) had submitted a resolution on the canals issue on April 7, and an extensive debate on that topic took place on the same day in which 30 MNAs expressed their concerns.

The speaker remarked that those now raising concerns about the lack of debate on critical issues such as Palestine, border areas tension and canals were the same who deliberately and consistently avoided participation in the House proceedings. He termed the approach regrettable and stressed that the effective and orderly functioning of the National Assembly required active, constructive, and responsible participation of all its members.