The “Parliamentary Studies Programme” is about to be launched in all leading public and private universities in the country.
Speaker National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq will chair a meeting today at the Pakistan Institute of Parliamentary Services to unveil the programme.
The brainchild of the speaker, the “Parliamentary Studies Programme” is aimed at inculcating the importance of democracy, its role in national development, and the scope and working of the parliamentary institutions among the youth, through classroom instruction.
The programme is aimed at effectively addressing the continued neglect in promoting a democratic culture in Pakistan, said a press release.
The course is also designed to ensure the provision of qualified human resources, appropriately equipped with relevant knowledge and expertise to serve the parliamentary institution and the legislators effectively.
There has long remained a dearth of such human resources, which is cited as a key handicap in the smooth functioning of the parliamentary institutions.
Seven decades of Pakistan’s existence have witnessed the nation’s bumpy ride on the democracy train, which was often marred by prolonged dictatorships, thus impeding the harmonious growth of a pluralistic all inclusive and mutually respecting democratic culture.
The institutions remained weak in the absence of a supportive mindset and competent faculty; hence, the fruits of democracy in the shape of a vibrant, informed and peaceful society have remained a distant dream.
The irony remains that there has been little or no effort to promote such essential democratic values in Pakistani politics. The result of which is that not a single academic institution in the country offers any course to address the subject. This is also evident from the fact that at present not a single law school offers a course on legislative drafting, which has rendered legislators unable to perform their duties as drafters properly.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq took up this challenge soon after assuming his office. The Speaker personally wrote to all the universities concerned, while the National Assembly Secretariat also sought assistance from the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, which has been running a graduate programme for parliamentary studies in association with the leading UK universities.
The acquired course outline, as offered by the UK universities, was reviewed by a panel of experts and lawyers and was then shared with the Higher Education Commission. The new course is an eventual outcome of this extensive brainstorming, which aims to address all existing lacunas.
Speaker Ayaz Sadiq will launch the newly devised course at a meeting of university vice chancellors and rectors.