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March 9, 2010, 10:52 am | 
Maverick Report
ISLAMABAD: Female members of National Assembly have been more active, assertive and effective voices of citizens than their male counterparts, as the House is set to complete its second parliamentary year this month, says a report titled ‘Performance Analysis of Women Members of the National Assembly’.
The report, released by the Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) to mark the International Women’s Day, said in a country where the political potentialities of women are underestimated and under-documented, the role of women parliamentarians sets a benchmark for their male counterparts to follow, as they accounted for more than half of the parliamentary business conducted during the second parliamentary year, despite the fact that women members represent only 22 per cent of the total number of parliamentarians.
Besides being headed by a woman speaker, the National Assembly includes 76 women members — 16 elected on general seats and 60 on reserved seats. While not all women parliamentarians have been equally active, 50 of them (66 per cent of the 76 female members) have contributed almost 50 per cent of the agenda of the Lower House in terms of their numbers of formal interventions — questions, calling attention notices, private member’s bills, resolutions, adjournment motions, points of order, and matters of public importance.
The report stated that out of a total of 3,314 questions, women members submitted 1,826 as compared to 1,488 submitted by their male counterparts. Most questions tabled by female members (835) were ‘starred’, requiring an oral answer. Women members of PML-N asked 1,127 questions, leading the National Assembly in fulfilling the appropriate legislative function of executive oversight, while PPP women members asked 500 questions, PML 199, ANP 46 and MQM women members asked 18 questions. Statistically, women members accounted for almost 60 per cent of parliamentary business related to executive oversight in the National Assembly.
A total of 67 private member’s bills were on the orders of the day for all sittings during the year, of which 49 were laid before the House. Of all introduced bills, female representatives introduced 43 bills either independently or jointly with other female or male members, while their male counterparts introduced only six private member’s bills.
Moreover, 19 of the private member’s bills were single member female bills, 14 were sponsored by multiple female members and 10 were jointly sponsored by male and female members. Only four single male member bills were introduced while two were sponsored by more than one male member.
Of a total of 49 resolutions on various issues, women members sponsored 23 as compared to 13 by male members. Women members tabled 22 motions under Rule 259 as compared to 12 by male members. Only 16 resolutions, however, were tabled in the House, of which eight were not on the orders of the day.
According to the order of the day, a total of 124 MNAs moved 147 calling attention notices (CANs), of which 38 were women members. Of the 147 such notices, 18 were sponsored by groups of male members, while seven were put forward by groups of female members. The remaining 122 notices were jointly moved by groups of male and female members.
CANs were raised by 16 female members of PPPP, 12 of PML-N, eight from PML and one each from ANP and MQM. As many as 26 CANs raised by women members were directed to the Cabinet Division, 19 to Finance Division, 12 to Ministry of Health and 10 to Ministry of Interior.
The rest were concerned with areas as diverse as water and power, defence, culture, food and agriculture, communications, education and petroleum and natural resources.
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