PA speaker acts promptly to rescue federal cabinet

LAHORE: Speaker Punjab Assembly Rana Iqbal on Thursday acted promptly to save the federal government from embarrassment when he adjourned the House proceedings after opposition members began raising slogans against government and members of federal cabinet.

The trouble began after leader of opposition Mian Mehmoodur Rasheed rose on a point of order when the House was about to take up the official business, the debate and passage of two bills on the agenda. He drew House attention towards the fact that federal cabinet met for several hours on the previous day but added that, sadly none of the items of its agenda pertained to the most pressing issues relating to national security and solidarity.

“Entire nation is in a shock today to see that the federal cabinet meeting did not utter a single word about the national security matters, worsening situation in Karachi, provocative statement of Indian Prime Minister Modi on Balochistan, and anti-Pakistan slogans by Altaf Hussain,” said the leader of opposition in an emotional tone. He said it looked as if the meeting was not of Pakistan’s federal cabinet but of the neighbouring belligerent country.

“Yesterday was the blackest day in country’s history since the policymakers of the country enjoying perks and privileges silent on vital issues like bloodbath in Kashmir, open admission of anti-Pakistan conspiracies by Modi, and anti-Pakistan slogans by Altaf Hussain,” he said, and added that “if the nation should consider this criminal silence as silent support to all those anti-state conspiracies.”

Terming this attitude highly intolerable and unacceptable, Mian Mehmood said entire MPAs should raise protest against it. During this hullabaloo, the speaker adjourned the proceedings in voice which was not audible enough to the press gallery where journalists were wondering why the members from both sides of the divide had started walking out of the House. The inquiring journalists were told by some of their colleagues that the speaker had in fact abruptly adjourned the proceedings for the next day despite that the two bills pending from the previous day were still on the agenda. The bills that were left over again on Thursday were The Punjab Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Bill 2016 and the Punjab Poultry Production Bill 2016.