Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD,:The 16th National Assembly successfully completed its first parliamentary year, achieving savings of over Rs. 1 billion in public funds and passing 51 bills, including the 26th Constitutional Amendment.
Completing the first year of the National Assembly marks a significant milestone in the parliamentary and legislative history of the country.
The House, as per vision of Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, has made remarkable strides in lawmaking with the successful passage of 40 government bills and 11 private members’ bills. In comparison, 36 government bills and 6 private members’ bills became acts.
As per the report issued by the National Assembly, the 13 sessions of the National Assembly were held, and 130 days of parliamentary proceedings were completed.
In addition to this, 26 resolutions were adopted during first the year and 1059 starred & 264 unstarred questions were answered by Ministries.
Moreover, 69 Calling Attention Notices and 4 Motions under rule 259 were discussed in the House.
During the Budget Session of the Financial year 2024-2025, Annual Budget for the year 2024-25 was also passed by the National Assembly after thorough debate and incorporation of the amendments proposed by the Members of the National Assembly in the Finance Bill. One of the most notable milestones was the passage of the 26th Constitutional Amendment Bill, which aimed at judicial reforms and reinforcing parliamentary supremacy.
Other important legislation includes the Digital Nation Pakistan Act, 2025, which aims to enhance Pakistan’s digital economy, and the Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Act, 2025, which updates cybersecurity and digital crime regulations
During the first Parliamentary Year of the current, the Speaker conducted the proceedings of the House with impartiality playing a pivotal role as a bridge between the opposition and the government in the legislative process of public importance.
Sardar Ayaz Sadiq gave special attention to the Question Hour to ensure that the public problems are being highlighted and resolved. During the Question Hour, when important public-related questions went unanswered, he summoned the secretaries of the relevant ministries, reprimanding them and instructing them to respond to each question in the House.
The Speaker’s Office became a center for political activities during the first parliamentary year. He reaffirmed his commitment to keeping his doors always open for Members of the National Assembly, particularly the opposition. Moreover, during the first parliamentary year, the treasury benches were given 71 Hours of floor time in the House and the Opposition Benches were given 66 hours of floor time in the House, which is much more than their strength in the House.
This is a reflection of Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq’s impartiality as custodian of the House.
In addition to its legislative accomplishments, the National Assembly has made substantial progress in improving the efficiency and accountability of its administrative functions. Under the leadership of Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, the National Assembly Finance Committee has approved a series of policy initiatives aimed at optimizing the Secretariat’s operations. The ongoing process of “right-sizing” the National Assembly Secretariat is being carried out in three phases. As of now, the first two phases have been successfully implemented, resulting in the abolition of 220 non-essential posts within grades 1 to 19.
