National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq on Friday expressed frustration over the repeated pointing out of quorum and the opposition's walkout during the session, which led to the adjournment of the sitting until Monday at 4 pm, reported 24NewsHD TV Channel on Friday.
While chairing the NA session, the Speaker voiced disappointment at the opposition’s absence, particularly when the majority of the day's questions had been submitted by them. “It is disheartening that opposition members chose to walk out when the House was engaged in discussions on pressing national issues,” he remarked.
Ayaz Sadiq further said that thirty members had actively participated in an earlier debate on the issue of water canals, while most opposition parties — except JUI — were notably absent.
He pointed out that the Pakistan People’s Party had already tabled a resolution on the canal issue on April 7, which was thoroughly discussed the same day. Surprisingly, a similar resolution was again submitted by opposition members on April 10.
Referring to the broader conduct of the opposition, the Speaker noted, “Those who speak loudly on issues like Palestine and border security often don’t show up when those very topics are scheduled for debate in the House.”
Later, the sitting was disrupted when Iqbal Afridi of the Sunni Ittehad Council pointed out the lack of quorum. After a headcount and a 30-minute suspension, the session was finally adjourned by Deputy Speaker Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah due to continued low attendance.
Reporter: Amanat Gishkori