Concentrate on the song, not the singer
The good governance for which ‘Tahir Square’ reverberated last month is what the great silent majority of Pakistanis earnestly desire – a genuine grassroots democracy instead of the elaborate farce in place. Dr Qadri surfed the public imagination by advocating this with his ‘dharna’ in Islamabad last month.
Despite the moral merit of their plaints, the people’s aspirations have been frustrated at the primary altar for their grievances, the Supreme Court (SC). Their Lordships are entangled in legal technicalities (with resultant delays). When the SC does in fact deliver, the government engages in legal filibuster before refusing to implement the SC ruling.
One has the greatest respect for their Lordships but the irony is that those disqualified by the SC ruling on the NRO continue to rule us and loot the public in the name of the constitution, despite the SC fretting and fuming ad nauseam.
With rule of law compromised, the democratic route of last resort for the people is to vent their frustrations in the streets. Those in power only succumb to such protest if it turns violent, which unfortunately risks extra-constitutional forces stepping in, ostensibly to restore law and order under the much reviled ‘doctrine of necessity’.
Hurdles created by both the federal (PPP) and the Punjab governments (PML-N) notwithstanding, around 20,000 or so Qadri supporters were cheered along the entire GT Road by massive crowds. The approximately 100,000 people that finally assembled in Islamabad remained peaceful – and as somebody commented, “not a flower pot in Islamabad was broken.”
It would be crass not to commend Dr Qadri’s outstanding organisational ability. Just consider the logistics – feeding so many people, tending to their medical and toilet necessities, etc, particularly women and children. The freezing rain on the third day was not something that even very hardy men can easily withstand, let alone old men, women and children. Even hard-bitten cynical observers came away impressed. Compare that with the washout of the PML-N sit-in before the ECP in similar freezing rain.
Dr Qadri may not have a following in the same numbers as the major political parties but he has become a political catalyst of some substance by seizing the opportunity to raise some crucial and vital questions. A small but hardcore following in many constituencies will certainly be of some benefit to whatever alliance he makes for the coming elections.
Badly needing media publicity for mobilising public support, the politician in Dr Qadri deliberately reversed the legal process he should have followed in the first place. Indulging in pure rhetoric of purpose, Dr Qadri may not have headed off a possible martial law (in “five minutes” as he claimed), but what would have happened had Imran Khan taken up his invitation to join the ‘dharna’? Itching to show off his federal manhood on primetime TV, the likes of Rehman Malik would be a good enough trigger to turn the large peaceful gathering into a mob; and mobs have a bad reputation of running amok, both by design and/or happenstance.
With the freezing rain having its own fallout on his loyal following, Dr Qadri desperately needed an ‘exit’ strategy. Needing to remove the ‘paralysis’ in place in Islamabad, the canny government negotiators led by Ch Shujaat and Kaira gave him a face-saving measure, a vague promise for a 30-day process for ECP “screening” aspiring candidates once the elections were announced.
The government won big time in out-manoeuvring Qadri but his ‘screening’ gambit opened up a legal Pandora’s Box. While the SC has rightly questioned his ‘locus standi’ as a Canadian citizen, does that negate the merits of his arguments? The SC is concentrating on the singer not the song.
For the electoral process to have integrity, it is very important to screen potential legislators. Why wait for the election schedule to be announced to start that? All the political parties must have completed intra-party polls otherwise they cannot take part in the elections. They can then immediately put forward two or three likely candidates for the seats each of the parties will likely contest.
The ECP can get professional and independent neutral panels of State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) qualified auditors to verify data of the aspiring candidates, including the president. It stands to reason that those who will possibly legislate the levying of taxes should be tax-payers themselves. Remember the slogan, “no taxation without representation”. How can the elected representatives be those who pay no taxes?
Most current parliamentarians – almost all of them likely candidates – will likely be disqualified if Articles 62 and 63 are invoked correctly. Parties like the PPP, PML-N, PML-Q etc will never accept this. While the PTI, MQM, JI, JUI-F will probably agree, their voice will be drowned in the cacophony that our blatantly feudal-supporting media will create.
The democratic thought of our two major political parties can be gauged from their failure to come to a consensus about a genuinely neutral caretaker prime minister. These ‘democrats’ only want someone who leans towards their party stance. This raises the question: why?
Our ruling political leaders are sorry symbols for blatant nepotism and corruption. And across the rest of the political spectrum we are also afflicted by a lack professional competence and/or the honesty and integrity that should support leaders aspiring for high public office. The focus of any democratic process must, therefore, not only be on the leader but also on his aides. A man is known by the company he keeps; and a leader is defined by the aides that surround him.
All political leaders necessarily have the charlatan in them (because of the demands of their profession of politicking), but that cannot be at the expense of the state or the government. Anyone receiving enormous amounts of money from the public can spread a fair amount around to become master (or mistress) of the game. Look at the pathetic stance of our mostly bought over media. With illegal money clearly influencing it, what is the sanctity of the vote?
The end game will be the prerogative of the SC. In the final analysis the courts will set the goalposts and create a level playing field for the ECP to conduct transparent, free and fair elections. Are the elections to be held pell-mell just because they are meant to be constitutionally within a certain period, or are we to hold elections as they are meant to be held according to the constitution, not give mere proforma lip service to it?
Whether we like it or not, we are again at a crossroads a month shy of the ‘Ides of March’. The shadow of the ‘doctrine of necessity” may then be acceptable to the public as not only a self-serving truth but as a necessity, doctrine or not!
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