MPA’s unique protest leads to assembly session adjournment

PESHAWAR: A unique protest by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)’s dissident Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Amjad Afridi led to adjournment of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly session on Monday without completing the agenda proceedings.

The MPA from Kohat started blowing a whistle he had brought along in the assembly hall when Deputy Speaker Dr Mehr Taj Roghani, who was presiding over the session, didn’t allow him to speak on a point of order.

Just after recitation from the Holly Quran, the question-hour session started. The Jamaat-i-Islami MPA Muhammad Ali’s question about revenue collection by the Excise and Taxation Department was deferred due to ill-preparation of the minister concerned.

Another question by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)’s Sardar Hussain about allocation of funds for technical education in Chitral was referred to the relevant committee.The question of Meraj Humayun Khan of the Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) pertaining to implementation on fixation of Rs15,000 minimum wage for labourers was also referred to the committee concerned.

In the meantime, Amjad Afridi wanted to speak on a point of order, but the acting speaker didn’t allow him to do so. He started blowing a whistle when his mike was not switched on.The opposition members also joined Amjad Afridi and started shouting ‘open Amjad’s mike’ when the speaker asked Muhammad Ali to proceed with his question.

Amjad Afridi continued speaking and blowing the whistle as members from both treasury and opposition kept laughing.He said the government had not been deliberately releasing the gas royalty to Kohat division for the last three years.

The gas royalty, he added, amounted to Rs6 billion. It was Rs2.4 billion for the financial year 2015-16, Rs2 billion for 2016-17 and Rs2 billion for 2017-18, he maintained.The MPA said only Rs560 million had been released during 2016-17 and Rs730 million in the current year while the remaining over four billion rupees was yet to be released.

Amjad Afridi said it was an injustice with the people of Kohat division and the elected public representative cannot remain silent over the issue.He alleged that the MPAs’ fund in Kohat was being utilized through PTI MNA Shehryar Afridi and District Development Advisory Committee Chairman Ziaullah Bangash.

The enraged MPA said he would not allow the government to misuse his funds and deprive Kohat division of its due right in the gas royalty.

He said the government was using delaying tactics and not releasing the royalty amount despite the fact it had only three months to remain in power.The members from the treasury benches tried to calm down the angry Amjad Afridi but in vain. It forced the speaker to adjourn the session till Tuesday amid rumpus and shouts.

Amjad Afridi was elected as an independent MPA from Kohat, but later he joined PTI and was made an advisor. In the previous ANP-PPP coalition government made after the 2008 election, he had joined the ANP and remained a minister. His brother Senator Abbas Afridi is affiliated with the PML-N and had served as a federal minister.