ISLAMABAD, March 12, 2015: The Senate elected its Chairman and Deputy Chairman as 48 senators took oath during the first sitting of the 113th session on Thursday, says Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN).
The sitting started 21 minutes behind the schedule with 65 members present at the start and 98 at the time of adjournment. Twenty-seven lawmakers participated in the debate to welcome the newly-elected Chairman and Deputy Chairman.
The Chairman was elected unopposed, while the Deputy Chairman was elected with a margin of 58 votes against the runner-up candidate.
The Deputy Chairman requested the opposition parties to submit the names for proposed candidates for the Opposition Leader within seven days. Similarly, independent members along with senators from Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) were also given seven days to decide whether to occupy the treasury or opposition benches.
Following are some key observations of the parliamentary business:
Members’ Participation in House Proceedings
- The Senate met for nine hours and 11 minutes.
- The sitting started at 1021 hours against the scheduled time of 1000 hours.
- 65 members were present at the start and 98 at the end of the sitting.
- The Senate Chairman was elected unopposed
- The Deputy Chairman was elected with 74 votes against 16 votes secured by the runner-up candidate.
- A PML-N senator acted as the Presiding Officer for the Chairman and Deputy Chairman’s election.
- Six votes were rejected.
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This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of FAFEN and in no way reflect the views of the European Union. This daily factsheet is based on direct observation of the Senate proceedings conducted by PATTAN Development Organization – a member organization of FAFEN. Errors and omissions are excepted.
