PA rejects governor’s amendments
By Imtiaz Ali
Karachi: The Sindh Assembly on Monday unanimously declined the request of Governor Sindh Dr Ishratul Ebad to bring amendments to the Sindh Criminal Prosecution Service (SCPS) Bill and rejected his suggestions. However, the house approved the governor’s proposed amendments to the Sindh Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority (STEVTA) Bill.
The PA had unanimously passed the bill on December 21, 2009 to establish SCPS to deal with the backlog of cases reportedly on the instructions of foreign donors and submitted it to the governor for assent. However, the governor returned the bill under the concerned law with the request/message for reconsidering the same. The governor sought amendments to the bill to restrict the functions of the prosecution agency to the district courts level and to describe the same qualifications for the prosecutor general as mentioned in the Sindh Criminal Prosecution Service Ordinance-2007.
But the amendments were rejected unanimously as no one supported it.
However, the Sindh Assembly unanimously passed the amendments suggested by the Governor Sindh to the STEVTA Bill. The amendments were mainly aimed at addressing the concerns of the Sindh Board of Technical Education (SBTE).
Minister for Technical Education Abdul Salam Thaheem said that the house had unanimously passed the bill on December 21 last year to establish STEVTA to bring all technical institutes under one authority.
He recalled that STEVTA was established under an ordinance promulgated by the governor in 2007, which was supposed to be passed by the provincial assembly under the instructions of the Supreme Court.
However, when it lapsed and the government realised that there were “some flaws” in it, they tabled a bill in the assembly, which was passed. But now the governor returned the bill with some proposed amendments. He said that the government considered the governor’s proposed suggestions as advisable and suitable and accepted the same since the employees of technical institutes have many reservations. He explained that the government employees had concerns that with the establishment of the STEVTA, they may not become the government employees as their services were transferred to the authority.
Now it has been amended so that they would remain the government employees and their facilities might be increased, he added.
Minister for Katchi Abadis Rafiq Engineer said that with these amendments, the anxiety of SBTE faculty would hopefully be addressed, adding, the SBTE would now be merged with STEVTA with the “consent” of its employees.
Auqaf minister complains of hopelessness: Minister for Auqaf Abdul Haseeb drew the house attention towards the occupation of Auqaf Department’s land in the jurisdiction of Eidgah police station allegedly in connivance with the police. He said that he immediately contacted Chief Secretary Sindh and also tried to contact the Chief Minister, CM’s Principal Secretary and Home Minister Sindh but all his efforts went unheeded. If this situation and hopelessness persisted, then the things would further deteriorate, he complained.
Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhro observed that the government should take notice as to how the land was being occupied under the supervision of the police. He, however, added that the minister should not complain in this way.
Senior Minister Pir Mazhar-ul-Haq said that he would bring this matter to the notice of the CM, adding: “Land occupation has become a cancer and we all have to work together to control it as only law-enforcement agencies could not end it.”
It has been observed that certain elements used to illegally occupy lands by hoisting flags of different political parties, he added.
Source: The News
Date:3/30/2010
” 
” 
” 
” 
