With only 56 days remaining in completion of the parliamentary year, there are no signs of President Musharraf delivering the much-waited address to the Parliament's joint sitting. A source told Business Recorder that a summary to summon the National Assembly session had been moved to the President House for approval. The session is likely to be commenced from August 29.
However, he maintained that they had no clue whether the Musharraf would fulfil the Constitutional requirement by delivering the presidential speech to the joint sitting during the upcoming session.
Article-56 (3) of the Constitution says, "at the commencement of the first session of each year, the President shall address both Houses assembled together and inform the Parliament of the causes of its summoning." Parliamentary traditions also conform to the Constitution on this specific matter. Needless to say, constitutionally speaking, the new parliamentary year is yet to begin formally, though it will end by November 15.
It is an another issue that ever since the Parliament started functioning, particularly since the 1980s, presidential address has never been a smooth affair, as the opposition lawmakers have been giving extremely tough time to the Head of the States.
Probably, the worst happened to Farooq Ahmed Khan Leghari, when Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) MNA Tehmina Daultana had thrown her shawl towards him while he was busy fulfilling the 'tricky' constitutional requirement. President Musharraf has said that he is prepared to address the Parliament, but the 'opposition would have to behave'. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Sher Afgan Niazi, who joined the PPP-Patriots on the day of Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali's election as premier in 2002, has endorsed these (Musharraf's) views that there was no need for the presidential address unless the opposition 'behaved in a democratic way'. Keeping in mind the present state of affairs between President Musharraf and the opposition, it appears almost impossible that the joint sitting of the Parliament would be convened in coming weeks.
Since November 16, 2002, when the present assembly came into existence, President Musharraf has addressed the Parliament once in 2003 on February 17 that too after the end to the long-drawn constitutional deadlock on the Legal Framework Order.
LFO was ultimately passed with a two-thirds majority under the tag of 17th Amendment with the crucial support of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal.
When contacted, a constitutional expert said that if this constitutional requirement would not be met, it would introduce a new trend in parliamentary traditions.
He pointed out that the Constitution was silent what would be the remedy or penalty if the parliamentary year ended sans presidential address. It is another issue if and how the government would hold minimum 56-day sittings. No session was held after the passage of the budget in June, mainly due to lack of interest among the ruling coalition lawmakers and the local bodies elections.
The National Assembly has so far held sittings for 74 days, while in a parliamentary year it has to meet for at least 130 days, marred by frequent quorum problem in the wake of diminishing interest of the ruling PML and its allies' members.
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