Formation of standing bodies, legislation: Speaker holds meetings with opposition leaders

Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser held separate meetings with opposition members of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Friday and discussed matters relating to formation of standing committees, legislation and smooth sailing of business of the House.
Former opposition leader and PPP stalwart Syed Khursheed Ahmed Shah and PML-N leaders Rana Sanaullah and Marriyum Aurangzeb called on Speaker National Assembly Asad Qaiser here at Speaker House. The formation of standing committees, legislation and matters relating to other parliamentary affairs were discussed during the meeting.
The speaker said that it is the joint responsibility of both the government and opposition for making environment of the National Assembly favourable and maintaining its dignity. "We have to uphold parliamentary norms, mutual respect and tolerance for each other for the smooth functioning of the Parliament," he added.
He said that criticism is the right of the opposition; however, it should be for betterment and not just to criticise. He stressed the need for joint efforts to overcome the challenges confronting the country. He said that the opposition has to play positive role in resolving national issues through the Parliament.
The speaker appreciated the role of opposition in making environment of the House more friendly and peaceful. He further said that parliamentary committees are important organ of the Parliament and the enactment of legislation is not possible without their formation. He said that the formation of the parliamentary committees is his foremost priority and he is in contact with the members of the government and opposition parties to resolve this matter as soon as possible. He expressed the hope that matter pertaining to the formation of the parliamentary committees would be resolved through mutual consensus in the upcoming session of the National Assembly.
Qaiser said that lawmaking is the prime responsibility of the Parliament and through effective legislation "we can solve public issues and can increase the dignity of the Parliament." He stressed upon the members of opposition to actively take part in legislation and give their suggestions for its improvement.
He said that presence of members in Parliament reflects their seriousness in the proceedings of the House. He asked the members of the opposition to ensure their presence during the proceedings of the House to run its business effectively.
Khursheed Shah appreciated the neutral role of the speaker in the assembly and assured full support of his party in the formation of the standing committees. He also appreciated the speaker's role in resolving the issue of Public Accounts Committee and making efforts for early formation of other standing committees and expressed the hope that the task of formation of standing committees will soon be completed with mutual consensus. He stressed for cooperation between the government and opposition for smooth legislation.
According to the sources, in a meeting with speaker, Rana Sanaullah and Marriyum Aurangzeb discussed the matters of legislation, formation of standing committees and production orders of Opposition Leader Shehbaz Sharif and Khawaja Saad Rafiq.
They said that the PML-N members assured the speaker to cooperate with him for smooth sailing of the business of the House. The said that the PML-N members would cooperate with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government for legislation in the interest of the nation and the country.