00:00Thank you, Excellency. We are here because parliaments matter. Now, may I have with
00:16honor to invite Honorable Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan, Speaker of the Provincial Assembly of Punjab,
00:23a senior legislator and lawyer, is closely associated with parliamentary reform,
00:28procedural strengthening and enhancing public trust in legislative institutions.
00:32Honorable Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan, Honorable Mia Raza Rubani sir,
00:56former Chairman, Senate of Pakistan, and as chief guest of this session,
01:05worthy speakers in the Assembly, Seyyid Vais Shah Sahib, Honorable Deputy Speaker of the Republic of Maldives,
01:15Excellency Ahmed Nazim, Honorable Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka,
01:24Excellency Dr. Rizvi Saleh, Honorable Speaker of the Provincial Assembly of KP, Excellency
01:33Baabar Saleem Sawati Sahib, Honorable Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of GB, Excellency
01:40Nazir Ahmed Sahib, the right Honorable Paul Yaw B. Tang, Honorable Dattu Sri Amr the Raja,
01:49Dr. Haji Muhammad Aymar bin Abdullah, Speaker of the Assembly from Malaysia,
01:55Honorable Dattu Sri Haji Mohamad Sharkar bin Haji Shamsuddin, Speaker of the Assembly from Malaysia,
02:04Honorable Law Wing Sen, Speaker of the Assembly from Malaysia,
02:08Ladies and gentlemen, I thank Mr. Avaesh Shah and his team for bringing in this very important,
02:23extremely important, I would rather say. The question of trust in Parliament depends how we come to the Parliaments
02:37and what we do in the Parliaments. It was an inspiring speech by the worthy member of the House of Commons.
02:46He has served in different capacities. He was sharing his experiences. Rightfully so, those words were very inspiring.
02:56But somehow, in the last few decades now I can say, the democracy is taking a different shape. It is dependent upon the houses in which we sit.
03:11It is dependent upon the procedures which we adopt. It is dependent upon the content which we bring out in these proceedings.
03:24If it is marked with violence. If it is marked with shouting. If it is marked without having subtle arguments. Not giving solutions. Not addressing the peoples of millions,
03:41because those who are still out of school. Still they don't have drinking water. The question of trust will remain very questionable.
03:52And I can see that. In my part of world, it is very apparent. In resolving the conflicts, same goes. Is it a house for reconciliation? Yes, in theory it is.
04:07But am I practicing it? I have fears for that. Are those issues, those are related to security? Can we just speak on them? Are those security issues, are these houses or the parliaments or the places where these debates have to be generated?
04:29I look around in my region. May those be in my neighboring regions. May those be in my country. May those be in the South Asian countries where we think that democracy has their own ways and they preach that they are the largest democracies but still decisions are made elsewhere.
04:54I have no doubt. I have no doubt in saying that. That it is a day of strong executives. Yes it is. It is a day of popular populism, popular leaderships emerging. Is it a bad day? Or is it an order of the day? Or will it continue to be the order of the day?
05:17Is it weakening? Is it weakening? Is it weakening the institutions? I am still figuring out. I am living the history. I am experiencing it. I am finding that the dignity which was related to the democracy, it has traveled a lot.
05:33It has traveled through the religion. It has traveled through different phases of the history. It has come to the democracy and the reflection of the democracy was these houses. In these houses, I find that still standing on this day, in this century, we are lacking.
05:58Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, this is a question of concern. In practice, we say, yes, it is. It has to be this way. These parliamentary oversights, they can produce results.
06:11If West has shown us. If West has shown us some ways of these inclusivity and these parliamentary oversights, changing and transforming the world for them, giving reason to the people and the populace, those who vote for these governments, to be part of that, it has happened.
06:32So can we do that? So can we do that? Do we have to invent a new wheel? Or do we have to do it our way, but following the same footsteps of parliamentary oversight, of inclusivity, of taking those challenges, of giving the dividends of democracy to the people at the grassroots?
06:55Today, in my part of the world, these conferences are helping. In the Lahore Charter, which we held last year in 2025, we spoke on multiple challenges.
07:12On AI, I have my concerns. I take it as a challenge. Or is it a challenge? Or is it an opportunity which will lead the way? It is leading the way in medicine. It is leading the way in industrialization. It is leading the way in education.
07:33But we sitting here, those who have to legislate. Are we equipped with it? How to legislate and regulate that? Can we leave these AI engines with the private companies? And can we just not look into the history?
07:53That we as humans, I just have to quote, that we as humans are in practice of creating monsters, which we don't know how to deal afterwards. So it is still a challenge. AI has its own benefits.
08:13Yes, but if it is left in the warfare, how to deal with it? Will it be inhaling the old inhabitations is still a question mark. And these parliaments, are we equipped? I have to say, no, sir.
08:33Ladies and gentlemen, undoubtedly, the things which will come for debate in these houses, meaningful debates, conclusive debates, with certain amount of authority. It is a place almost in where we share the same common background of commonwealth.
09:00But we have some certain similar rules. And in these rules, we can clearly understand that executive takes birth at this place. In most parts, in most constitutions, it is answerable to these houses.
09:26But somehow, but somehow, the minute we climb the ladder of executive, we divorce the parliaments. This is the reality of the day.
09:37In the first commonwealth parliamentary association, which was a joint conference in Lahore declaration, we set certain challenges.
09:46I really have to appreciate Sindh is an excellent law. We are still thinking over it, and Sindh has done it. So these are meaningful things which need to be done.
10:02I just have to congratulate Awas again, of bringing all these people together, and continuity of that first conference here.
10:18First conference here. So I have learned today, every single word of worthy member of the House of Commons, I meant lot to me, my friend from Sri Lanka.
10:31His experience of resolving conflict was really light for me to follow.
10:38Our friend from Maldives, in his very modest words, gave a clear road map, and I hope that we continue to share our experiences and carry on with these dialogues and these conferences of region become
11:00a continuous effort which we take. I thank you all for hearing me out on this. Thank you.
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