Senate processings: Opposition stages 'sit-in' against promulgation of ordinances

In an unusual development, the opposition on Tuesday staged a 'sit-in' in the Senate against the government's practice of 'habitually' promulgating the presidential ordinances without consulting the Upper House of the Parliament.

Chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani had summoned the Senate's ongoing 294th session but he did not preside over the Senate's Tuesday proceedings due to the reason that Sanjrani, who is part of the government committee tasked by Prime Minister Imran Khan to hold dialogue with opposition on Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl's (JUI-F's) Azadi March, was busy in relevant meetings, sources in opposition told Business Recorder.

The Senate session was presided over by Deputy Chairman Senate Saleem Mandviwalla. Interestingly, the house, that was expected to intensely debate on the scenario involving the JUI-F's ongoing sit-in the federal capital, instead, focused on government's policy to promulgate presidential ordinances.

During the Senate proceedings, senators from opposition parties created a furore over the promulgation of presidential ordinances by the government and slammed the dissolution of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) through a presidential ordinance.

The opposition senators then staged a sit-in in front of the chair as Mandviwalla kept asking the lawmakers to go back to their seats. "What is the urgency to rely on presidential ordinances instead of parliamentary legislation? The government ministers are saying that ordinances are permissible in the Constitution.

They are, but under specific circumstances, when both the houses of the parliament are in recess due to inevitable reasons," Raza Rabbani from Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) said.

"This government prefers presidential ordinances mainly because some key members of this government used to be the key aides of late dictator Zia-ul-Haq," Rabbani added.

This attracted a response from Parliamentary Affairs Minister Azam Swati. "I don't know why Raza Rabbani is calling us the companions of Zia-ul-Haq. I faced jail terms twice during Zia's era," he said before the acting chairman stopped the parliamentary affairs minister from commenting any further on the matter.

Swati said the PPP promulgated 14 ordinances during its first year in power and 54 ordinances during second year in power and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) promulgated 34 ordinances when it was in power. "Then why, we, alone, are being blamed for the ordinances?" he asked.

On October 31, President Dr Arif Alvi promulgated eight ordinances; the Letter of Administration and Succession Certificates Ordinance 2019, the Enforcement of Women's Property Rights Ordinance 2019, the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) (Amendment) Ordinance 2019, the Superior Courts (Court Dress and Mode of Address) Order (Repeal) Ordinance 2019, the National Accountability (Amendment) Ordinance 2019, the Legal Aid and Justice Authority Ordinance 2019, the Whistleblower Protection and Vigilance Commission Ordinance 2019 and the Civil Procedure Code Ordinance, 2019.

Earlier on September 4, the government had to withdraw the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (Amendment) Ordinance 2019 after strong criticism from the opposition parties, public circles and media. The ordinance promulgated on August 27 was not laid in the Senate.

Through this ordinance, the government had decide to waive off half of the outstanding liabilities (estimated at Rs 208 billion) of fertilizer, textile, power generation and compressed natural gas (CNG) sectors that were payable to the government.

Constitutionally, an ordinance can be promulgated for 120 days but if a resolution disapproving the ordinance is passed in the National Assembly or Senate then the ordinance stands repealed. An ordinance can be extended for 120 days but if a resolution to disapprove the ordinance gets passed by either house of the parliament, it stands repealed.

Furthermore, an ordinance lapses permanently, after being extended once, and requires parliamentary legislation to become law. Parliamentary legislation (requires passage from both houses of the parliament) can also be done any time before an ordinance is lapsed to make it a law.

The Article 89 reads, "Power of President to promulgate Ordinances.-(1) The President may, except when the (Senate or) National Assembly is in session, if satisfied that circumstances exist which render it necessary to take immediate action, make and promulgate an Ordinance as the circumstances may require. (2) An Ordinance promulgated under this Article shall have the same force and effect as an Act of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) and shall be subject to like restrictions as the power of Majlis-e-Shoora (Parliament) to make law, but every such Ordinance-(a) shall be laid -before the National Assembly if it contains provisions dealing with all or any of the matters specified in clause (2) of Article 73, and shall stand repealed at the expiration of one hundred and twenty days from its promulgation or, if before the expiration of that period a resolution disapproving it is passed by the Assembly (or Senate), upon the passing of that resolution. Provided that the National Assembly (or Senate) may by a resolution extend the ordinance for a further period of one hundred and twenty days and it shall stand repealed at the expiration of the extended period, or if before the expiration of that period a resolution disapproving it is passed by the Assembly (or Senate), upon the passing of that resolution: Provided further that extension for further period may be made only once."

The Senate will meet again today (Wednesday) at 3:00pm.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019