ISLAMABAD: Does Dr Hafeez Shaikh in his capacity of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs enjoy legal sanction to head the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) and Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE)?A constitutional expert opined that Shaikh can legally hold these positions while a public sector expert disputes it. “Under the Constitution, an adviser can be appointed a member or head of such a committee,” Barrister Omar Sajjad told The News when contacted for his opinion. He explained that Article 93 says the President may, on the advice of the Prime Minister, appoint not more than five advisers, on such terms and conditions as he may determine. The provisions of Article 57 shall also apply to an adviser.Omar Sajjad pointed out that according to Article 57 the prime minister, a federal minister, a minister of state and the attorney general will have the right to speak and otherwise take part in the proceedings of either Senate or National Assembly, or a joint sitting or any committee of which he may be named a member, but shall not by virtue of this provision be entitled to vote.This, he said, means that Article 57 makes it clear that adviser can speak and participate in the parliamentary proceedings and be part of a committee but he can’t take part in voting for not being an MP.The public sector expert told this correspondent on condition of anonymity that the ECC, CCoP and CCoE can only be chaired by a cabinet member, not by an adviser. He said that the Supreme Court in the Mustafa Impex case ruled that cabinet powers can’t be delegated to anyone who is not its member. An adviser is not a member of the cabinet in this sense, he believed.Similarly, he said, an adviser can’t be in the National Finance Commission or the Council of Common Interests because he is not a minister. A federal minister’s powers can’t be delegated to adviser as a cabinet member has been defined in the Constitution, he said.The expert was of the view that nomination of Hafeez Shaikh as the heads of the ECC, CCoP and CCoE is controversial, contentious and unconstitutional and strikes at the very basis of parliamentary system wherein an unelected adviser can’t preside over such committees.Omar Sajjad pointed out that under Article 92, subject to clauses 9 and 10 of Article 91, the President shall appoint federal ministers and ministers of state from amongst the members of Parliament on the advice of the prime minister.He referred to Article 91(9) and said a minister who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of the National Assembly shall, at the expiration of that period, cease to hold the cabinet office and shall not before the dissolution of that assembly be again appointed a minister unless he is elected its member. This will not apply to a minister who is a member of the Senate.Nothing contained in this article will be construed as disqualifying the prime minister or any other minister or a minister of State for continuing in office during any period during which the National Assembly stands dissolved, or as preventing the appointment of any person as prime minister or other minister or a minister of State during any such period.The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had got Hafeez Shaikh elected as senator to take care of any constitutional or legal complication because opposition parties would kick up dust when an adviser on Finance would present the federal budget in the National Assembly.In April last year, Miftah Ismail, the then adviser to the prime minister on Finance, was appointed the finance minister hours before presentation of the budget 2018-19 in the National Assembly by him under Article 92(1) read with Article 91(9) of the Constitution, which (Article 91(9)) provides that anyone, picked up by the premier as his cabinet member, can remain minister for six consecutive months despite not being member of the Parliament.At the time, this was done fearing the opposition’s protest in the National Assembly on the ground that an adviser can’t present the budget.During the previous PPP government headed by Benazir Bhutto in the nineties, the then powerful adviser on finance VA Jaffery was also not allowed to unfold the budget and instead minister of state for Finance Ihsanul Paracha had performed this function.In normal circumstances, the principal forums like ECC, CCoP and CCoE are led by the finance minister. Prime Minister Imran Khan has named Adviser Hafeez Shaikh to chair these committees after the exit of Asad Umar as finance minister. Next month, Hafeez Shaikh will present the federal budget in the National Assembly.
from The News International - National http://bit.ly/2V3Z8Qr
0 comments:
Post a Comment