ISLAMABAD, June 20, 2013: Starting two hours late, the Sindh Assembly opened debate on the budget in the second sitting of the third session on Thursday. The sitting lasted three hours before it was adjourned to meet again on Saturday, June 22.

Seventeen MPAs – eight PPPP, seven MQM, and one member each of PMLF and PTI – took part in the budget debate, consuming two hours and 13 minutes of the sitting time.

A total of 50 members were present at the outset while 57 were there at the time of adjournment. A maximum of 102 members were present at one point of sitting.

The Speaker chaired the proceedings for two hours and 34 minutes while the rest of the proceedings were chaired by the Deputy Speaker.

MQM staged a token walkout against the target killing of its workers.

Following are some key observations of the proceedings:

Members’ Participation in House Proceedings

• The Sindh Assembly met for three hours.
• The sitting started at 1130 hours against the scheduled starting time of 0930 hours, witnessing a delay of two hours.
• The Speaker chaired the proceedings for two hours and 34 minutes while the rest of the proceedings were chaired by the Deputy Speaker.
• A total of 50 members were present at the outset while 57 were there at the time of adjournment. A maximum of 102 members were present at one point of sitting.
• The Chief Minister attended the sitting for 55 minutes while the Leader of the Opposition attended the sitting for 15 minutes.
• Six minority members attended the sitting.
  

Representation and Responsiveness

• Seventeen MPAs – eight of PPPP, seven of MQM, and one each of PMLF and PTI – took part in the budget debate, consuming two hours and 13 minutes of the sitting time.
  

Order and Institutionalization

• MQM staged a five-minute token walkout against the target killing of its workers.
• No point of order raised during the sitting.
  

Transparency

• List of Business was available to the legislators, observers and others.

• Information of members’ attendance was available to observers and the public.

The Daily Factsheet is based on direct observation of Sindh Assembly proceedings conducted by Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF), a member organization of FAFEN