ISLAMABAD (National Times) Peoples Party’s (PPP) Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani was elected unopposed Senate chairman and PML-N’s Syedaal Khan Nasar deputy chairman on Tuesday.
Presiding Officer Ishaq Dar administered oath to the newly-elected chairman.
In his inaugural address, Gilani wished “Eid to all honourable senators.”
He thanked the allies, including the PML-N and the PML-Q, “who trusted in me.” He promised that he would try to live up to everyone’s expectations.
Later, he administered oath to deputy chairman Syedaal Khan.
Maulana Attaur Rehman prayed for the martyrs. Ishaq Dar congratulated Gilani on his election as chairman who then prorogued the session till April 19.
Senators take oath
Earlier, the senators-elect took oath amid the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s call for postponing the exercise.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, former caretaker prime minister Anwarul Haq Kakar, Ishaq Dar, MWM’s Raja Nasir Abbas, Hamid Khan and Faisal Vawda are among others who took oath. In all, 41 senators took oath.
PTI Senator Ali Zafar requested the presiding officer of the Senate to put off the session as the upper house was incomplete without memebers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
He made the request at the start of the session which is being held for election of new chariman and deputy chairman. He said the PTI had already sent a letter to the secretary for postponement of session as it was unconstitutional to elect officials without completion of the house.
He said Article 60 of the Constitution provides that chairman and deputy chairman would be elected when the house is complete.
He said “we wanted to participate in the election, but when the election is against the constitution, we cannot be a part of it.”
Senator Zafar said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) recently took steps which created a constitutional crisis. It did not allow the PTI to contest elections.
“The general election has become controversial, why are we taking another election in this direction? Unless senators from KP are elected, the session should be postponed,” he requested the presiding officer.
Addressing the house, Senator Mohsin Aziz said the Senate is a “house of federation”, if one unit (province Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) of the Senate is not present, this election is not valid.
The senator from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa addressed the presiding officer saying “either save the state or politics”. “Election will be held any other day but if a bad tradition is set, it will be remembered for the rest of the life.”
He said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, of which I am a part, has rendered immense sacrifices. Today you cannot add to its deprivations, he added.
Presiding Officer Ishaq Dar rejected the objections of the Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and after heated debate and protest by its members, he administered oath to the newly-elected members.
Those senators-elect who took oath included 18 senators of the PPP, 14 of the PML-N, three of the JUI-F and one each of the SIC and the MWM.
