ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly of Pakistan passed the Islamabad Local Government Amendment Bill, 2024, by a majority vote on Monday, despite opposition parties opposing it.
The bill, which was moved by Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar, introduces significant changes to the Islamabad Local Government Elections Act, particularly at the Union Council (UC) level.
The amendment, approved during a session chaired by National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq, increases the number of elected representatives at the UC level. Previously, only the positions of chairman and vice chairman were elected at this level. However, the new bill proposes the addition of 13 more representatives, bringing the total to 15 elected officials per UC.
According to the statement of objects and reasons, the bill is aimed at amending Section 17(3) of the ICT Local Government Act, 2015 and the words “People’s Representative Act, 1976” will be substituted with the “Elections Act, 2017.
According to the bill, alongside the chairman and vice chairman, nine UC members will be directly elected. Additionally, one representative each from the categories of farmer/labourer, minority, youth, and women will also be elected at the UC level.
The bill’s text suggests that the increase in the number of elected officials will lead to a more effective transfer of power to the grassroots level. The general seat candidates will be directly elected, while candidates for the general council will be chosen through a secret ballot. Once the electoral process is complete, the UC secretary will convene a meeting to elect the chairman and vice chairman under their chairmanship.
The bill also addresses the necessity of aligning the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act with current electoral laws. It replaces references to the outdated “Representation of the People Act, 1976” with the more recent “Elections Act, 2017”.
“The brief facts leading to amendment in Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act, 2015 are that Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act was promulgated in 2015 to establish an elected Local Government System. The term of Local Government of ICT expired on 14.02.2021 and the Federal Government and the Election Commission are obligated to conduct the elections within 120 days in terms of Section 219 (4) of the Elections Act, 2017,” it stated.
“In order to complete necessary arrangements for the conduct of Local Government Elections in Islamabad, the ECP asked for issuance of notification regarding the number of reserved seats of Metropolitan Corporation Islamabad (MCI) and amendment in Section-17 of the ICT Local Government Act, 2015 to the effect that ‘the Representation of the People Act, 1976’ should be replaced with ‘Elections Act, 2017’,” it added.
Earlier, the House offered fateha for the departed souls of officials of security forces and law enforcement agencies, who embraced martyrdom in various incidents of terrorism.
It also prayed for the departed souls of civilians and other people, who died in different incidents and road accidents.
The National Assembly was informed today that the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority worked out various initiatives to increase the accessibility of the public to the Internet.
Responding to a question during the Question Hour in the House today, Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Azam Nazeer Tarar said PTA has allowed six gigahertz spectrum band for unlicensed operation for Radio Local Area Network in Pakistan.
The Minister further said that by unlocking this band, Pakistan has become the 10th country in Asia Pacific to embrace six gigahertz for Wifi. He said currently, only sixty countries worldwide have unlocked six gigahertz for RLAN WIFI services.
Azam Nazeer Tarar said this development aims to facilitate the deployment of next-generation Wifi technologies across Pakistan, empowering businesses and individuals with high-speed, low latency connectivity. This initiative underscored Pakistan’s commitment to bridging the digital divide and ensuring nationwide access to advanced technologies.
The Minister said the PTA has also formulated the telecom infrastructure sharing framework for the growth and sustainability of the telecom sector in Pakistan.
Answering another question, Minister for Aviation Khawaja Muhammad Asif said the New Gwadar International Airport project is substantially completed and operationalization of the new airport is expected by the end of this year after formal handovers and trials. He added the New General Aviation Aerodrome near Muridke is substantially completed and will be operational by the end of next month. It is anticipated that general aviation organizations and flying schools will be relocated to the new aerodrome within three to four months.
Several reports of various standing committees of the National Assembly were presented before the House.
The House adopted a motion electing Sajid Mehdi, Raja Qamar Ul Islam, Ms. Sofia Saeed Shah, Ms. Mahtab Akbar Rashdi and Ms. Shahida Begum as Members of the Board of Governors of the National Book Foundation.
The National Assembly also adopted another motion, electing Nuzhat Sadiq, Dr. Nafisa Shah and Khawaja Izhar-Ul Hassan as Members of the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education.
