ISLAMABAD – Striking out all the distortions introduced in the 1973 Constitution during the dictatorial regimes in the past, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reform, Mian Raza Rabbani on Friday presented the proposed 18th Amendment draft containing 102 amendments and 11 recommendations to the Government, in Senate and National Assembly simultaneously.
Amid the thumping of the desks Mian Raza Rabbani unfolded the report on the draft of 18th Amendment in the National Assembly and said that it took nine months to restore the Constitution in its real shape and finally the Committee succeeded to do away with the notorious 58-2B, LFO, 17th Amendment, 6th and 7th schedule and Concurrent List.
“It is an historic day and I am lucky to present this historic report in the Parliament but at the same moment I am unlucky as my political leader with whom I had started my political journey is not with me. I dedicate this day to Shaheed Benazir Bhutto”, Mian Raza Rabbani said in an emotional tone.
Giving crux of the recommendations, Raza Rabbani said, “The LFO 2002, LFO (Amendment) 2002 and LFO (Second Amendment), 2002 were declared to have been made without lawful authority and of no legal effect and, therefore, shall stand repealed; and the Constitution (Seventeenth Amendment) Act, 2003 is hereby repealed.”
It proposes in Article 6 of the Constitution that a person who abrogates or subverts or suspends or holds in abeyance, or attempts or conspires to abrogate or subvert or suspend or hold in abeyance, the Constitution by use of force or show of force or by any other unconstitutional means shall be guilty of high treasons.
He said after Article 10 of the Constitution, the Committee proposed insertion of Article 10(A), which says, “For the determination of his civil rights and obligations or in any criminal charge against him a person shall be entitled to a fair trial and due process.”
He said amendment in the Article 25 says that the state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of five to 16 years in such a manner as may be determined by the law.
In article 27, it is proposed that under-representation of any class or area in the service of Pakistan may be redressed in such manner as may determined by an act of Parliament.
He said the Committee proposes substitution of Article 51 of the Constitution under which there shall be 342 seats for members in National Assembly including seats reserved for women and non-Muslims.
He told that the Committee had recommended that Article 59 of the Constitution would be substituted and the Senate would consist of one-hundred and four members, of whom four non-Muslims, one from each province, would be elected by the members of each Provincial Assembly. “This shall be effective from the next Senate elections after the commencement of the Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act,2010.”
He said that the Committee had also recommended amendments in Article 92 of the Constitution according to that the total strength of the Cabinet, including ministers of state, would not exceed eleven percent of the total membership Parliament. The amendment shall be effective from the next general elections held after the commencement of the Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act, 2010.
Mian Raza Rabbani informed the House that according to suggestions from CRCP, the Governor should be a registered voter and resident of the province concerned while substituting Article 104 of the Constitution, Speaker provincial assembly shall perform functions of governor in his absence and in the absence of speaker too any other person as the President may nominate shall perform the functions of governor until the governor returns to Pakistan or, as the case may be, resumes his function.
Chairman CRCP said that the recommendation for amendment of Article 128 of the Constitution says that the provincial assembly may by a resolution extend the Ordinance for a further period of 90 days and it shall stand repealed at the expiration of the extended period, or if before the expiration of that period a resolution disapproving it is passed by the Assembly, upon the passing of that resolution: provided further that extension for a further period may be made only once.
“The amendment is also recommended in Article 154 of the Constitution. It is amended that the Council of Common Interest shall be constituted with in thirty days of the Prime Minister taking oath of the office and the Council shall have a permanent secretariat and shall meet at least once in ninety days: provided that the Prime Minister may convene a meeting of an urgent matter”, Rabbani told the Lower House.
Chairman CRCP further told that the amendment in Article 157 was also suggested and according to this amendment: The Federal Government shall, prior to taking a decision to construct or cause to be constructed, hydro-electric power stations in any province, shall consult the provincial government concerned while in case of any dispute between the Federal and provincial government in respect of any matter under this Article, any of the said government may move the Council of Common Interest for resolution of the dispute.
After the clause 3 of the Article 160,2 new clauses shall be inserted. According to Clause 3A, the share of the provinces in each award of the National Finance Commission shall not be less than the share given to the provinces in the previous award while 3-B says that the Federal Finance Minister and provincial Finance Minister shall monitor the implementation of the award biannually and lay their report before both Houses of Parliament and the Provincial Assemblies.
Raza Rabbani told that according to amendment of Article 167 of the Constitution clause 4 shall be inserted which says that a province may raise domestic or international loan, or give guarantee on the security of the Provincial Consolidated Fund within such limits and subject to such conditions as may be specified by the National Economic Council.
He said that the recommended amendment of Article 161 says that the net proceedings of the federal duty of excise on natural gas levied at well-head and collected by the Federal Government and of the royalty collected by the Federal Government, shall not form part of the Federal Consolidated Fund and shall be paid to the provinces in which the well-head of natural gas is situated; the net proceedings of the federal duty of excise on oil levied at well-head and collected by the Federal Government shall not form part of the Federal Consolidated Fund and shall be paid to the province in which the well-head of oil is situated.
He informed that the recommended substitution of Article 243 says that the President shall, on the advice of the Prime Minister, appoint the Chairman, Joint Chief of Staff; the Chief of the Army Staff; the Chief of the Naval Staff; and the Chief of the Air Staff and shall also determine their salaries and allowances.
It was proposed that a commission comprising Chief Justice of Pakistan as Chairman, two most senior judges of the Supreme Court, a former chief justice or a former judge of the Supreme Court to be nominated by the CJ in consultation with the two member judges for a period of two years, Federal Minister for Law and Justice, Attorney General for Pakistan and senior advocate of the Supreme Court nominated by the Pakistan Bar Council as members, will appoint judges of Supreme Court and High Courts.
Amendment of Article 232 suggests that for imposition of emergency due to the internal disturbances beyond the powers of a provincial government to control, a resolution from the provincial assembly of that province shall be required: Provided further that if the President acts on his own, the proclamation of emergency shall be placed before both the Houses of Parliament for approval by each House within ten days.
Earlier, Chairman Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms Raza Rabbani congratulated all the political leaders sitting in and out side of the Parliament and said that it became possible due to the cooperation of all political parties, which wholeheartedly participated in the meetings of the Committee.
He told that the Committee received more than 800 recommendations from civil society, communities living in Pakistan and other segments, however, it was difficult to adjust all of these but some of these were included in the recommendations of the Committee.
Senior Vice President of PML-N Javaid Hashmi, on the point of order, congratulated the Committee, Prime Minister, President and other leadership of the country and said the world was thinking that Pakistan would not on the world map in 2012 but this Committee had flushed away all such concerns.
Riaz Hussain Pirzada of PML-Q also congratulated the Committee and other MPs and said that the political parties would have to make the Parliament strong to prevent the external powers from derailing the democratic system.