Quorum haunts NA for fourth straight day

ISLAMABAD: It was yet another lackluster day of the first session of the fourth parliamentary year of the National Assembly dogged by lack of quorum.

The Speaker Asad Qaisar on Wednesday had to adjourn the proceedings of the House till Friday, after the government failed to complete quorum on Wednesday for the fourth consecutive day.

The PML-N parliamentarian Murtaza Javed Abbasi pointed out lack of quorum after the chair declined to accommodate his point of order when his party colleague Chaudhry Birjees Tahir was given the floor to ask a question. It is ironic that the last three working days of the ongoing session which began on Friday (September 17), witnessed incomplete proceedings mainly due to lack of quorum.

Now the House will meet on Friday (today) at 1100 hours. Due to the issue, the House did not take up five government bills, two calling attention notices, including a motion of thanks to President for his address to Parliament on September 13, 2021, three reports of standing committees and four statutory reports.

Meanwhile, the Minister for Power Hammad Azhar in written reply to a question informed the House that the average cost of providing electricity in the system is Rs.16.43 and the life line consumers are provided the highest amount of subsidy in electricity tariffs.

The amount of this subsidy at current rates is Rs.12.48 while NEPRA determined rate of electricity for such consumers at Rs.4 per unit. The government provides electricity to such consumers at Rs.3.95 per unit. The tariff for such consumers was fixed on Rs. 3.95, after increase of Rs.1.95. The number of life line consumers billed as life line consumers in July 2021 was 1,539,209.

Parliamentary Secretary on Human Rights, Lal Chand told the House during Question Hour, that a project titled Human Rights Programme with special focus on rights of women and children was launched.

He said Family Protection and Rehabilitation Centres are also working in the Capital Territory to provide shelter and legal support to women victims of violence. Besides, a gender protection unit has also been established in the Federal Capital with the helpline 8090 to assist and rescue the victims, he said.

Replying to a question, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan informed the House that government is ready to provide funds to set up model courts to dispense justice.

Earlier, at the outset of the proceedings, the government fell short of moving a motion for constitution of a committee on electoral reforms. As Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs, Babar Awan rose to move the motion, the PPP member Shazia Marri on a point of order, said the content of the motion should be shared with them. During a meeting of opposition parliamentarians with the Speaker on Tuesday, it was decided that the motion will be moved in both the houses for constitution of a committee to discuss issues relating to electoral reforms.