A 130-member delegation of the National Security and War Course of the National Defence University (NDU), comprising senior civil and military officers from Pakistan and friendly countries, visited Parliament House.
The delegation, headed by General Muhammad Naeem Akhtar, met with Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq. Welcoming the delegation, Ayaz Sadiq said that the National Defence University is a prestigious educational institution of the country, and its graduates are serving in key civil and military institutions of Pakistan.
He informed the participants about Pakistan’s parliamentary system, the composition and functioning of the National Assembly (NA), the legislative process and the role of Standing Committees in legislation.
NA Speaker said that matters of national importance are discussed in the National Assembly and that Parliament is a representative institution of the 250 million people of the country.
He said that Pakistan is an active member of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and other international parliamentary organisations, adding that the Parliament of Pakistan is effectively highlighting the Kashmir issue at international forums.
Ayaz Sadiq said that the Speaker’s discretionary powers regarding recruitment of employees in the National Assembly had been transferred to the Finance Committee.
He further said that various training courses are conducted to enhance the capacity of officers and staff of the National Assembly and that the recruitment process in the National Assembly is completely carried out on merit.
Ayaz Sadiq said that a drafting council had been established in the National Assembly Secretariat to facilitate Members in legislative drafting.
He said that the National Assembly had saved rupees six billion during the last financial year as part of its austerity measures.
NA Speaker highlighted the measures undertaken by Parliament for energy efficiency, digital transformation and environmental sustainability. He said that an energy-efficiency audit of the National Assembly was conducted in 2013, while Pakistan’s Parliament became the world’s first parliament to completely shift to solar energy in 2015.
