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Politics : Idea Of The Day -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (43752)	3/12/2003 7:34:37 PM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50167

dailytimes.com.pk Soomro, Khalil get a walkover * Opposition senators boycott election after taking oath ‘under 1973 Constitution’ * Govt accuses opposition of double standards By Shahzad Raza ISLAMABAD: The Senate began functioning after a three-year hiatus on Wednesday by electing Mohammadmian Soomro and Khalilur Rehman chairman and deputy chairman unopposed. The opposition parties boycotted the election. The new chairman and deputy chairman were the unanimous candidates of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid-e-Azam) and its allied parties. The government coalition has 53 seats in the 100-member Senate. Earlier the opposition senators took oath while stressing that they were doing so under the 1973 Constitution and not under the Legal Framework Order (LFO). The leaders of the opposition parties argued that their senators took oath to reject the LFO, and to send a message that the government would not be allowed to continue “violating” the constitution. There were predictions prior to the Senate session that the opposition would boycott the entire proceedings or create a rumpus in the house. Some senior opposition leaders had asserted that their senators would not take the oath until the deletion of controversial amendments from the constitution. Former Senate chairman Wasim Sajjad, conducted the election of his successor, swore him in and handed the house over to him. Mr Soomro then announced the unopposed election of Mr Rehman as deputy chairman and administered him the oath. He congratulated the senators for being elected. “It is a historical day for all of us. Today, the parliament is complete. The big personalities are present, and new comers like me will seek their guidance,” Mr Soomro said. He pledged to run the house in complete understanding with the opposition. He said national solidarity, provincial harmony and the continuity of good policies ought to be priorities. “The problems are a lot. But we will resolve them with mutual understanding,” he added. Mr Soomro announced that he would soon constitute house committees, adding that he would also talk to the prime minister’s finance advisor, Shaukat Aziz, for the removal of certain problems of the senators. He later read a presidential order under which the session was prorogued. After the chairman and his deputy were sworn in, 20 senators took two hours to congratulate and assure them of their full cooperation. SM Zafar said Muhammad Ali Jinnah himself had become the first Governor General under a piece of legislation, the Government of India Act of 1935. Mr Sajjad praised Mr Soomro, predicting he would run the house well with his “excellent administrative and political skills”. Before the senators were sworn in, Raza Rabbani demanded to be heard on a point of order. The presiding officer refused, but eventually agreed to allow one senator from each party to speak. The PPP leader began his fiery speech with a verse from revolutionary poet Habib Jalib, saying ‘any black law is unacceptable’. He said the opposition would take oath under the constitution as it stood be prior to October 12, 1999, the day General Pervez Musharraf took power in a military coup. “No individual has the right to amend the constitution. We don’t accept the LFO,” Mr Rabbani said. Asfand Yar Wali, leader of the ANP, agreed, saying his party’s senators too would take oath under the 1973 Constitution. MMA’s Professor Khurshid said when General Musharraf had suspended the Senate, it was “his first crime, as the Senate is indissoluble”. MQM’s Babar Ghouri condemned the opposition parties’ reaction to the LFO and questioned why they were creating hurdles to the establishment of a democratic setup. PML-N’s Ishaq Dar said the presiding officer of the National Assembly had informed the members at its inaugural session they were being sworn in under the 1973 Constitution, not under the LFO. He said it was unfortunate that the assembly had been prorogued when it should be discussing the pressing Iraq issue.