Islamabad - As many as two hundred parliamentarians from 53 countries of the Commonwealth unanimously chose Pakistan as the venue of its 61st Conference here in Yaounde, Cameroon at the concluding plenary of the 60th Commonwealth Parliamentary Assembly (CPA), according to a message received here from Cameroon on Friday. The occasion witnessed some emotional moments when Speaker National Assembly Sardar Ayaz Sadiq was elected President of CPA for the year 2014-2015.
The Speaker was escorted to the President’s chair amidst the African and Caribbean delegates, particularly the parliamentarians of South Africa, Malta, Tanzania, Swaziland and others. Speaker National Assembly thanked the delegates for their overwhelming support to the Pakistani proposal and assured the conference of Pakistan parliament’s best efforts to make the 2015 Conference a success.
Earlier, the Speaker made a presentation on the proposal to host the conference in Pakistan, which was followed by a short documentary that was especially prepared for the occasion.
In his speech, the Speaker said “Holding of the 61st Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in my country will be yet another great boost for the democratic forces of Pakistan as it will be a manifestation of your combined confidence in our democracy and your unwavering support to our system.” He said “Developing democracy in Pakistan stands at a defining moment of our history. The year 2013 witnessed the first peaceful democratic transition of power from one elected government to the other, under a complete civilian rule in Pakistan.” It was certainly a historic landmark, he added.
Sardar Ayaz Sadiq informed the participants of the conference that the overwhelming success of military operation in the tribal areas to root out the menace of terrorism has been widely appreciated by the international community.  “The marked improvement in the security situation is evident from the re-emergence of vibrant political activities in Pakistan as numerous political parties are holding rallies and public meetings without any acts of violence or mishap or fear”, the Speaker said.