LAHORE: It was business as usual at the Punjab Assembly on Friday: the House met 90 minutes late than the fixed time of 9am, the proceedings survived only for 35 minutes when the quorum crisis stuck and the House was adjourned for Monday af ternoon.

The House started proceedings around 10.30am and the problem started immediately when it realised that the secretary Primary and Secondary Health, whose department was supposed to give answers posed by different members, was missing.

The chair adjourned the House for 20 minutes and ordered the Secretary, who was reportedly sitting in his of fice, to reach immedi-ately and he arrived within the ordered time. But the House had hardly taken up the first question when Ahsan Riaz Fatiyana pointed out quorum. At that point of time, hardly 45 members less than half of the total mandatory requirement were sitting in the House.

The chair ordered customary ringing of bells ñrst for ñve and then for 20 minutes, but to no avail.

The Treasury could only assemble some 60 members and the Speaker had no choice but to adjourn the House for Monday afternoon. He, however, found a scapegoatinthe secretary Primary and Secondary Health, and blamed him for the entire mess for the day.

`It was because of him the proceedings were delayed and ultimately could not be completed. An inquiry must be held against himwhy he violated the privilege of the House and report must be furnished in the House,` he ordered as the House suf fered the quorum crisis.

The secretary concerned is accused of violating Speaker`s earlier ruling that the departmental head must be present when the Assembly takes up question regarding a particular department.

The chair, however, conveniently forgot that the quorum crisis was now almost permanent part of the proceedings and even on Friday, the attendance register of the House has 110 attendances marked on it and the House, at any point of time, never went beyond 60.

During the brief session, the leader of opposition Mian Mahmoodur Rasheed, speaking ona point of order, opposed the reported NRO (the infamous National Reconciliation Ordinance between the PPP and former president Pervez Musharraf) between the government and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. `The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) would not only oppose any such move but would be on the roads, protesting against it,` he repeated the earlier line taken by his party chief in the last few days.

Behaviour of the members towards House, especially those coming to the assembly, marking their presence and disappearing was discussed more in the corridors during the 20-minute recess. `It is a combination of apathy and callousness, where the House is being used to make money instead of legislation,` said an employee.