Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani on Friday sought a reply from Prime Minister Imran Khan over the continuous absence of PTI ministers from Senate proceedings.
While Senate proceedings were underway, the chairman instructed the Senate Secretariat to write a letter to the PM, informing him of the ministers’ absence and inquiring as to why these lawmakers have not been attending the house’s proceedings.
“The ministers have made a habit of not attending the Senate session,” the chairman said, adding that his dissatisfaction at the ministers’ absence should be conveyed to the premier.
The opposition also recorded their protest on the absence of ministers and asked the chairman to pass a ruling on the matter.
Minister of State for Revenue Hammad Azhar, on the other hand, tried to turn the tables and commented on PPP Senator Sherry Rehman’s absence from the Senate: “A recommendation has been on the agenda for two days but she [Rehman] has not been here [to discuss it].”
“Millions of rupees are spent on a single [Senate] session and these people do not come to the parliament,” he said.
Earlier this month, the Senate Standing Committee on Information had decried the absence of Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry at its meetings and rejected the national advertisement policy draft placed before the committee.
Prior to that in December last year, the Senate Standing Committee on Water Resources had cancelled its meeting in protest over the absence of the top hierarchy of the water sector, including federal Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda.
The absence of senators and ministers has been a matter that has consistently haunted the Senate chairman, in this government as well as in the past. In his time, former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani also had a hard time executing the house’s business due to this issue.
