Where there’s a bill, there’s a way!

By
Hussain
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195
163

In a landmark legislation to ensure free, fair and transparent elections in the country, the National Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed the 20th Constitutional Amendment Bill, making mandatory the appointment of a caretaker setup with consensus between the prime minister and the National Assembly opposition leader.
The amendment also lays out the procedure and mechanism to appoint the caretaker setup in case the prime minister and the opposition leader fail to reach consensus within three days. In that case, the National Assembly speaker would appoint an eight-member committee with four members each from the government and the opposition to reach an agreement within three days.
However, if the deadlock still persists, the matter would be referred to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to resolve and forward its recommendations to the president to install a caretaker government to hold elections in the country. These recommendations would be binding on the president. This move has kept the judiciary out of the electoral process. The amendment also provided a one-time legal protection to 28 members of parliament and the provincial assemblies whose membership was suspended for being elected during a time when the ECP was incomplete under the terms of the 18th Constitutional Amendment. Differences between the government and the opposition had delayed the tabling of the amendment. After the two sides reached an agreement, the bill was finally tabled in the Lower House on Tuesday after the federal cabinet approved it earlier in the day. After a brief debate in the National Assembly, the House unanimously passed the bill.
Opposition Leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan raised some questions on the new amendments made into the agreed draft of the bill.
ADJOURNMENT: Upon request, the speaker adjourned the House for 20 minutes. However, this brief lull continued for around an hour and later both parties reached an agreement on the bill. Afterwards, the bill was passed unanimously.
DIVISION: Though no one had opposed the bill, in the third reading the speaker opted for division in the House. All 247 members had to go to the ayes gallery and register their votes.
Now the bill will be sent to the Senate and after its passage there, the bill will be sent to the president for approval to make it part of the constitution.
PM: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani assured the National Assembly that passage of the 20th Amendment would ensure a free, fair and credible ECP and a caretaker government. Speaking on the floor of the House after the bill was tabled, the prime minister said the government wanted to hold the general elections in a free and transparent manner so that nobody could raise a finger over its credibility and impartiality. “We want to ensure a fully autonomous election commission for holding free, fair and transparent elections in the country so that no political party, like in the past, raises concerns of rigging,” said Gilani.
Gilani said a lengthy debate between the government and the opposition was held to evolve consensus on the 20th Amendment. A special meeting of the federal cabinet was convened to give its unanimous approval.
Agreeing with one of Nisar’s points, Gilani said there were some forces outside parliament that wanted to scuttle the 20th Amendment. “We are the leaders in parliament and it is our right to give it a direction,” he said.
He agreed to Nisar’s suggestion of adjourning the session for some time to remove glitches in the draft bill. Regarding the issue of no opposition in Sindh and Balochistan assemblies, Gilani said a judicious system would be introduced in all the provinces and the suggestions of opposition leader would be implemented.
NISAR: In a rare gesture of praise for the treasury, Nisar showered praises on the prime minister and said this unanimous bill would help strengthen the democratic process in the country.
CABINET: The federal cabinet, at a special sitting, approved the landmark draft bill of the 20th Amendment, paving the way for nomination of a consensus caretaker setup to hold general elections and empowering the ECP to hold independent, free and fair elections in the country.
The meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Gilani, also took up eight other items on the agenda but the focus remained on the historic bill, which was passed by the federal cabinet unanimously.
INFORMATION MINISTER: “The bill aims at amending six articles of the Constitution including 214, 215, 216, 218, 219 and 224 while another clause, Article 224-A, has been inserted into the constitution through the draft bill,” Information Minister Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan told reporters here at PM’s Secretariat.
She said the bill had been drafted in consultation with all political parties with representation in parliament, including opposition parties. Moreover, she said in line with the pattern of the superior judiciary, from now on the members of the ECP would also take oath with the chief election commissioner. These posts would also be tenure postings for five years and they had been given constitutional protection, she said, adding that under the law, no member of the ECP could be fired and their removal would also be through the same process as with the judges.
“This will help strengthen the democratic process and it will also bring transparency to the electoral process,” she added.
About the nomination of the caretaker prime minister, Dr Awan said under the 20th Amendment, after the dissolution of the incumbent National Assembly, the leader of the house and leader of the opposition would send a joint proposal to the president to name a caretaker prime minister within three days, who would then appoint the caretaker premier.
Responding to a question, the minister said Nisar had not linked the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s support for the 20th Amendment to reduction in petroleum prices.
The minister said the four incumbent members of the ECP had been nominated on the recommendation of a 12-member parliamentary committee. She said the proposed amendment was not meant for a specific timeframe or to favour any party but for the times to come.
She said that the cabinet had also appreciated the role of the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) in preparation of computerised electoral rolls carrying photographs of the voters.
She said the cabinet was informed that special paper would be imported for the publication of ballot papers so that the doors of rigging could be closed forever.

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195 COMMENTS

  147. Step down & take your band wagon along with you .
    STOP dreaming that People are going to vote for you Or your SON , Zardari

  150. Yet again, the MNAs have proved what a bunch of useless self-serving pack of wolves they all are.
    That bill benefits none but the politicians currently lording it over us. It is also an attempt to prevent free and fair elections that might bring PTI to power, as the neutral PM will be picked by the very people and parties who would be ousted by Imran's party. Common interest means that Nawaz's pathetic opposition will join Zardari's incompetent administarion in picking a set that guarantees the same faces and names in the next sorry excuse for a democratic set up.
    We the people are fed up with this.
    Tunisa and Egypt may be the best out come you can hope for. there is also the Lybian and Syrian option.

    • Only Option is an inqalaab led by Imran khan. Listen to him people of Pakistan, He is the only person who speaks the language of common people and acts like one. PML N & PPP are Bullies & wanted no more.. When Insaf will come, these guys should see them behind bars. They have taken pakistan & Pakistanis for aride for awful long time. PML & PPP **** OFF

  151. Zardari has during past 4 years made it abundantly clear that he who trusts him will forever regret the day he reposed that trust in him. 20th Amendment took so much time because of the zero trust factor in Az.

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