Pakistan’s Newly Elected: National Assembly Meets Today
By Aziz Malik ‘Pakistan Times’ Federal Bureau Chief

ISLAMABAD: Heralding a fresh dawn of democracy – the newly-elected National Assembly of Pakistan – meets in Islamabad today, Monday.

All-out arrangements have been finalized for the maiden session of the lower House of the Parliament – the National Assembly – wherein 334 members will be taking oath as MNAs – today.

On seven out of total 342 National Assembly seats either there is litigation or the election was terminated or postponed with result culminating in a tie on one seat reserved for women from NWFP.

Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain would chair the inaugural session wherein the House would constitute 225 seats, just three short of two/third majority, for the ruling coalition PPPP, PML-N and ANP.

In all, 121 members from PPPP, 91 from PML-N, 13 from ANP, 51 from PML, 25 from MQM, six from MMA, five from PML-F, 19 independent and one each from PPP-S, NPP and BNP-A are likely to take oath and sign the roll of the House.

Two important political figures of the country and leaders of majority parties Benazir Bhutto and Mian Nawaz Sharif would not be the part of the House.

Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in a suicide attack on December 27 at Liaqatbagh and Nawaz Sharif could not contest elections, although the latter would be witnessing proceedings from the galleries.

As most of the Cabinet members of the PML government had lost elections, new faces and stalwarts from the past opposition parties would be replacing them.

Seats allocation, for the session of 13th National Assembly, would hopefully be made alphabetically and the names of the members for signing the roll would be called the same way.

Election for the Speaker and Deputy Speaker will be held through secret ballot on Wednesday (March 19) and the deadline for filing nomination papers for the offices of Speaker and Deputy Speaker has been set for Tuesday (March18) by 1200 hours.

Election for the new Speaker National Assembly would be conducted by sitting Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain and the election for the Deputy Speaker would be conducted by the new Speaker.

With the election of the new Speaker and Deputy Speaker this session would culminate as for the election of Leader of the House, the session would be summoned later.

Speaker National Assembly Chaudhry Amir Hussain had clarified couple of days back that MNAs-elect would take oath under the 1973 Constitution as no change has been made in the oath.

National Assembly Secretariat has already issued passes to number of important political leaders as prominent politicians like Asif Ali Zardari, Mian Nawaz Sharif, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Provincial Governors and Chief Ministers, Acting Chairman Senate and Senators and other important personalities are expected to be present at the inaugural ceremony.

The Secretariat had also decided to open up a welcome counter at Islamabad International Airport for guidance of the MNAs-elect and provide them necessary information.

Special souvenir have also been prepared for the members of the new Assembly while arrangements for their stay at the parliament Lodges have been finalized and allotments have been made.

Arrangements are also being made to ferry the members to their respective residents from the airport.

After Saturday night’s blast near Super Market, security arrangements have further been beefed up with police squads seen patrolling the Capital roads.

Areas closely adjacent to Parliament building as well as Constitutional Avenue, Judges Colony road and area from Ayub Chowk to PTV Building have been declared as Red Zone.

Security in these areas would remain on high alert and no irrelevant and unauthorized persons would not be allowed to travel through these routes.

ICT Administration has advised the unauthorized people not to travel towards the parliament building to avoid any inconvenience.

Security staff of the Parliament would guard the gates of the Parliament House to receive the newly elected Members National Assembly after identification and keep a vigilant eye on the movement of any unauthorized person.

Secretary Interior has also directed ICT to security check all vehicles at exit and entry points of the capital.●