NA passes bills related to military, nuclear command structure as Bilawal objects, opposition walks out

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Thursday passed two bills pertaining to the military and nuclear command structure in a session that saw the opposition staging a walkout and the PPP — an ally of the ruling PML-N — objecting to the legislation.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif presented the two bills — the Defence Forces Act, 2010 and the amended National Command Authority Act, 2010 — while the opposition walked out.

Meanwhile, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari raised objections, saying that no consultation was held before the bills were presented.

The bills were not on the NA’s agenda for today. Earlier in the day, they were approved by the federal cabinet meeting, which was chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The premier was also in the NA when the bills were presented and left after the NA’s approval for the legislation.

The session was adjourned till 11am on Friday.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) after the federal cabinet meeting said the bills had been prepared in continuation of the tweaks made to the Constitution under the 27th Amendment.

The Defence Forces Act, it said, “aims to determine the relevant administrative matters regarding the office of the Chief of Defence Forces and the Chief of Defence Forces Headquarters”.

Meanwhile, the amendments to the National Command Authority Act were described as “a necessary process” following the 27th Constitutional Amendment.

The 27th Constitutional Amendment, enacted in November last year, fundamentally altered Pakistan’s higher defence architecture by abolishing the office of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and creating the new position of chief of defence forces, concurrently held by the chief of army staff.

Field Marshal Asim Munir became the country’s first chief of defence forces following the constitutional changes.

The Amendment also resulted in the creation of the Commander of the National Strategic Command (CNSC) post, a four-star office that oversees the operational integration of Pakistan’s strategic forces.

Last month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had promoted Gen Syed Aamer Raza from the rank of lieutenant general and simultaneously appointed him as the country’s first CNSC.

Following his appointment, amendments in the National Command Authority Act, 2010, which still reflects the pre-27th Amendment military hierarchy, are needed.

Suspension of proceedings

Before the bills were presented, NA Speaker Ayaz Sadiq had suspended the proceedings for 15 minutes due to the absence of ministers and parliamentary secretaries during the question hour.

At this, the speaker expressed displeasure. “If you are not going to take parliamentary business seriously, then there is no point in holding the question hour,” the speaker remarked.

The speaker particularly expressed displeasure at the absence of an official from the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination during question hour.

He directed that the secretary of the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination be summoned. “Even their staff did not deem it necessary to attend,” he noted.

The speaker also summoned the secretary and other officials of the Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination.

“If they fail to attend in future, a privilege motion should be moved against the minister for Parliamentary Affairs and the concerned official,” he warned. Following this, the speaker adjourned the session for 15 minutes to allow all officials concerned to arrive.

More to follow.