ISLAMABAD: The S
enate on Monday decided to approach the government to ensure the attendance of ministers and senior bureaucracy in the meetings of the S
enate Standing Committees to make the oversight function of the Upper House more effective. The S
enate Chairman and Leader of the House in S
enate would communicate with the Federal Government in writing in this regard. The S
enate Chairman also asked all Chairmen of the S
enate Standing Committees to set realistic agendas for committee meetings with a focus on the issues referred to the committees. This would help meet deadlines and avoid unnecessary wastage of time.
While chairing a meeting of Council of Chairmen today at Parliament House, Mian Raza Rabbani said that the main focus of the S
enate Standing Committees should be on timely execution of the Parliamentary Business assigned to them and take up the other issues afterward, so that there was a minimum left over agenda of the committee’s meetings. He said that there was an increasing trend to seek extension in time by different Standing Committee
s which should be discouraged. He directed the S
enate Secretariat to provide all possible assistance and expertise to the Standing Committees for sm
ooth execution of the official business and apprised the meeting that the S
enate was working on a plan to b
uild more Committee Rooms for better facilitation and avoid duplication of the meetings of different Standing Committees.
Speaking on the occasion, the Leader of the House in S
enate Raja Muhammad Zafar ul Haq said that the issues confronting the S
enate Standing Committees with regard to the response from the government functionaries, ministries and divisions have decreased. He said that substantial improvements have been noted in different areas a
s a result of Parliamentary oversight which need to be appreciated.
During the meeting, Chairmen of the S
enate Standing Committees highlighted the problems being faced by the Committees and their proposals to further improve the oversight function of the S
enate more effective.