News
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
New accountability law hits snags
* Meeting of NA Standing Committee on Law, Justice cancelled
By Tanveer Ahmed
ISLAMABAD: The new accountability law has hit the snags again when Standing Committee of National Assembly on Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, scheduled to meet on October 26-27, cancelled its meetings because of remote chances to evolve the consensus on the said law.
Holder of Public Offices (Accountability) Bill 2009 lying with the committee for the last 30 months has turned out to be a bone of contention between ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with the former submitting dissenting notes on the law under consideration of the committee.
On the other hand, PPP put blame on PML-N for not dissenting notes, as it wants a consensus law to be passed from the committee for its presentation in the parliament.
“We stand by our dissenting notes and has no plan to withdraw it”, Anusha Rahman, PML-N’s MNA and a key member of team representing it in the committee told Daily Times.
She said that the meeting of the Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Standing Committee has been cancelled by PPP, thus dampening the chances of any earlier finalization of accountability law, replacing the one enacted in dictatorial regime of General Pervez Musharraf.
PPP and PML-N have locked horns on the NAB issues ranging from the appointment of its Chairman to the amended law as the recent appointment of Admiral (r) Fasih Bokhari as appointment of NAB chairman has been challenged by the opposition party in apex court.
PML-N has claimed of showing maximum flexibility on the new law but vowed to stick with the dissenting notes it has submitted in the committee. “Party wants the committee to present the bill in the house for vote without caring for our dissenting notes”, the PML-N members repeatedly urged the chairperson of the committee Begum Nasim Akhtar Chaudhry in various meetings held in the past.
The former federal minister for parliamentary affairs Babar Awan had presented the Holder of Public Office (Accountability) Act 2009 in Lower House of the Parliament on April 15, 2009.
The government moved this vital legislation in the house as per the promise made by Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani on the floor of the house immediately after being elected the chief executive of the country.
At the time of its tabling in the house, PPP and PML-N had not acrimonious relations as of today but the law could not even sail through easily in the committee as it triggered serious objections from the PML-N side.
The ongoing confrontation between the two largest parties have made it even harder for approval of this bill with consensus especially in view of latest controversy over new NAB chief who has been appointed despite the PML-N’s opposition to it.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk
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