ISLAMABAD: Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Aftab Ahmed Sheikh on Monday apprised the Senate that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will display an initial list of delimitation of constituencies on February 28.
Opposing a resolution regarding delimitation of the National Assembly (NA) constituencies in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) for general elections 2018, moved by Sajjad Hussain and others in the House, the minister said the government had already decided that old seats of FATA would remain intact.
He said after the new census, the delimitation process was being carried out in the country but FATA’s NA seats were not slashed, despite the fact that the tribal areas have a low population density.
Earlier, Leader of the Opposition Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan said that under the constitution, FATA had 12 seats, which could neither be increased nor decreased. There was no need for carrying out delimitation in FATA, he added.
Later, the House passed the resolution, which recommended to the government that the process of delimitation of constituencies in FATA for the upcoming general elections should be stopped immediately, adding that the general elections 2018 should be held per previous delimitations.
The House also passed two other resolutions. One resolution recommended that in view of growing collaboration between Pakistan and China under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), the learning of Chinese language should be encouraged in schools and colleges. The other resolution stressed that the government should take necessary steps to set up separate branches of the National Bank of Pakistan in Dadak and Kangri tehsils of Musakhel district, Balochistan.
Meanwhile, a private member bill, titled ‘Members of Parliament (Salaries and Allowances) (Amendment) Bill 2018’ was introduced in the House by Sitara Ayaz. The Senate chairman referred the bill to the standing committee concerned for further deliberation.
Senator Farhatullah Babar, on behalf of the Functional Committee on Human Rights Chairperson Nasreen Jalil, presented the report of the committee on the bill to protect the rights of transgender persons to the House. This bill also included provisions for the welfare of transgenders in Pakistan.
