PTI, PML-N members trade barbs in KP Assembly

PESHAWAR: The ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) members traded barbs and chanted slogans against one another in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on Monday.

A question from Amna Sardar of PML-N about vocational centres and posting of teacher from Dera Ismail Khan at the vocational centre in Galyat turned the House into a fish market as the opposition member was not satisfied with the answer sent by the Social Welfare Department and the reply by Parliamentary Secretary Zareen Zia.

Amna Sardar said she had sought details of the vocational centres in the province and the quality of training, but the department had given a two-line short answer without any details. She said it was also ironical that teacher at the school was not local but from Dera Ismail Khan, which was an injustice with the locals and also with the teacher.

Sardar Idrees of PTI also said the posting of teacher outside the district and even of the region was condemnable and against the government policy.

The PML-N parliamentary leader Sardar Aurangzeb Nalotha, while taking part in the debate, said it was deplorable that lakhs of rupees were being spent on the assembly session but ministers were not attending the session to reply the questions. He said the PTI should be ashamed of this ugly situation. Mehmood Jan of PTI retaliated by saying the PML-N should be ashamed.

Zarin Zia shouted and said the PML-N should be ashamed of having a disqualified person as its president. Other members also joined their party's members and the House witnessed a rumpus for some time when Deputy Speaker Dr Mehr Taj Roghani, who presided over the session, restored order to the House.

To another question by Amna Sardar about policy for transgender community in the province, the House was told that a draft policy had been prepared awaiting approval from the committee constituted for the purpose.

The mover said that other provinces and National Assembly and Senate had framed policy for the community but KP had yet to do legislation. However, Zareen Zia said the draft-policy had been prepared. The speaker, on a point from Amna Sardar, ruled that a woman and representative of the transgender community should also be included in the committee. Another question about steps for women development was referred to the committee concerned. The House unanimously adopted a resolution moved by Amna Sardar. She had asked for making tree plantation mandatory in all government and private schools.

The resolution by Sahibzada Sanaullah of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) asking Balochistan government to announce compensation for the heirs of labourers from Upper Dir who had lost lives in a coalmine collapse in Harnai, Balochistan, was also unanimously passed.

Another resolution was by Munawar Khan of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-F for regularisation of the services of Class-IV employees serving with chairmen of the District Development Advisory Committees.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Public Service Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2017 was introduced in the house. However, the question of Fakhre Azam Wazir of PPP on shortfall in the budget receipt and total recovery could not be sent to the relevant committee.

Fakhre Azam said the government had failed to achieve the target of provincial own receipts. He said the budget targets of previous years also could not be met. Provincial Finance Minister Muzaffar Said told the House that in the 2016-17 budget estimates, the target was Rs49507 million, which was revised as Rs32468 million but the total recovery in 12 months stood at Rs27325.588 million, thus showing shortfall of Rs5142 million. However, he said that for budget 2017-18, the target was Rs45215 million.

To another question by Fakhre Azam, the minister told the House that the provincial government did not get a loan of Rs10 million reflected in the white paper. He said the House would be informed about the terms and conditions if the loan was received.