About two weeks past the elections, millions of those who exercised their vote in February expect a lot from the mandate they have bestowed upon their representatives. The challenges facing this country are many, least of which is the breakdown in a sense of security of citizens, no matter where they are in this country. The armed personnel--who are symbols of providing security as servants of the state--are prime targets themselves. It is advisable that one stays clear from their person and the vehicles they drive for one�s own benefit or on the other hand if one were to strictly apply the mortality argument and believes that life would surely end one day, just stay aloof of such matters and resign to one's fate.
There isn't much good news in other domains of life and activity of the state and its subjects. The country is on the verge of a power deficit which now adds to the list of deficits we face today. The huge budgetary deficit is another hot item threatening the economic viability of this country. It is surprising that even though the country has allegedly benefited due to the rescheduled debts which results in a saving of about a billion dollars each year, the economy of the country is apparently in disarray and the deficit continues to increase, seemingly at a rate which is not healthy. Faced with a high inflationary rate which is seemingly out of control, the common man strives to survive himself as well as support his family members.
And if it were not enough, the power crisis is still on. Of late, the �city of lights�-- Karachi, the most productive city of this country--has been thrown deep into a well of darkness. Pakistan never truly looked to become an industrial nation soon, thanks to the negative conditions that exist today. But this famine of electricity in the country which has hurt the existing industry most severely, seeks to discourage the present industrial managers from either expanding their industrial activity or plunge them into a crises which may eventually lead to closures of their existing plants indefinitely or altogether outright for good.
Needless to say, the soaring price and shortage of wheat and gas are other items which would require attention of the managers of this country.
The misdeeds of individuals of the previous regime has also contributed to a large deal to the misfortunes that we face today. This is not to say that Pakistan was corruption free before the Musharraf era and good governance was a prevailing phenomenon. Only a threat to public officials that they are at all times subject to rule of law, regardless of who they are, can they be desisted from engaging in large-scale corrupt activities which are manifested today in sophisticated corporate activities and white-collar crimes. An independent judiciary can be the only effective check on this system.
Although the Parliament exists as a debating platform for administrative activities and scrutiny of such actions, it has been seen in the past that governments have successfully bypassed the platform by subverting the effectiveness of parliament through the use of the speaker�s office and carpeting of issues. Additionally, the attendance of ministers in the sessions of Parliament needs to be ensured for an effective policy monitoring and critical analysis of governmental actions. The judiciary issue is in effect also another of our problem, which although being mentioned finally as the greatest problems that faces us all as well as the new government-in-waiting, is the greatest of all problems which must be resolved and the reinstatement issue must be discussed as being proposed by the leading parties, PML(N) and now more actively, by the PPP.
An independent judiciary goes far beyond issues such as those which are deemed to be merely �constitutional� by those who seek to dodge the crises rather than address it seriously and move on towards resolving it. Such elements consistently point to �economic issues� as well as �security issues� as paramount thereby implying that the judicial issue can be avoided and be dealt with maybe at a later stage and perhaps pushed under the carpet for the moment. Political parties must desist from such tactics which would have drastic consequences. It has been seen that the judiciary has exposed the government in the recent past when it has tried to usurp its powers in the name of �privatizations� and resource generation which was in fact a ploy to loot national assets. Without accountability and transparency, which is ensured with the help of an independent judiciary, any move to lift the country out of other crises threatens to be short-lived with limited effects.
Perhaps the accountability factor of an independent judiciary is an impediment towards the goals of governments which have in the past used the state machinery to promote the interests of its members. It has been seen how the NRO has successfully absolved Mr. Zardari of all the cases in which allegedly billions were looted by him. On top of this a lot has also been spent on the pursuit of such cases by governments, paid at public expense of course.
One cannot ignore but stress the importance of a free press which is another effective pillar of the state and a check on the government of the day. Along with the judiciary, the press faces a common enemy which is the government of the day. Having great tendencies to adopt secrecy in lieu of transparency and accountability, governments have never been comfortable with a free press which exposes administrative actions in public and subject elected representatives to electoral accountability in an increasingly vibrant society which thanks to the press is more enlightened, which allows them to enjoy the fruits of democracy and making governments as they should be-by them, of them and for them, as once famously said.
It is encouraging that coalitions between traditional enemies are in the offing thanks to a matured form of politics which is apparent at the moment. Although the difference over the reinstatement issue seems to be the biggest hurdle between PML(N) and PPP, an eagerness to work together for the sake of democracy is an encouraging sign for the future of democracy and parliamentary sovereignty. However, a common ground must be reached soon enough on the judiciary issue or the coalition will fall apart sooner than it took to get the two in the same camp, hand-in-hand. It is true that differences over the issue between the two parties have some history now and have not just cropped up in the recent past all of a sudden. However, one side, the PML(N) has adopted a consistent stance, refusing to bow down to pressure by the establishment or inducements of ministerial posts by its PPP partner. On the other hand we have the fluctuating position of PPP, which has swayed like a pendulum over its position on the issue. The same is true about accepting General Musharraf as president with PML(N) adopting a harsh stance and PPP, sensitive to the public opinion in the pre-election period, having asked General Musharraf to resign in a not so distant past, now looks set to accept him as president and work with him.
Unless the two sides find common grounds soon, the foundations of the National Assembly would be built upon loose blocks and it would be a matter of time before the building comes crashing down. Faced with an APDM, which would provide fresh impetus to the lawyers� movement along with civil rights activists, time is of an essence to the representatives of the people arriving at a common a solution towards finding the right solution, acceptable to all in the Parliament. APDM has wisely allowed times to the peoples� representatives to reach a consensus on the issue. With nothing to loose, APDM and the lawyers� movement looks set to go on overdrive soon if a solution is not founded for the crises within a reasonable period of time. The problems of the elected representatives are compounded enough to be dealing with such an issue and their attention must be focused on other pressing issues after finding a just solution to this issue first.
There isn't much good news in other domains of life and activity of the state and its subjects. The country is on the verge of a power deficit which now adds to the list of deficits we face today. The huge budgetary deficit is another hot item threatening the economic viability of this country. It is surprising that even though the country has allegedly benefited due to the rescheduled debts which results in a saving of about a billion dollars each year, the economy of the country is apparently in disarray and the deficit continues to increase, seemingly at a rate which is not healthy. Faced with a high inflationary rate which is seemingly out of control, the common man strives to survive himself as well as support his family members.
And if it were not enough, the power crisis is still on. Of late, the �city of lights�-- Karachi, the most productive city of this country--has been thrown deep into a well of darkness. Pakistan never truly looked to become an industrial nation soon, thanks to the negative conditions that exist today. But this famine of electricity in the country which has hurt the existing industry most severely, seeks to discourage the present industrial managers from either expanding their industrial activity or plunge them into a crises which may eventually lead to closures of their existing plants indefinitely or altogether outright for good.
Needless to say, the soaring price and shortage of wheat and gas are other items which would require attention of the managers of this country.
The misdeeds of individuals of the previous regime has also contributed to a large deal to the misfortunes that we face today. This is not to say that Pakistan was corruption free before the Musharraf era and good governance was a prevailing phenomenon. Only a threat to public officials that they are at all times subject to rule of law, regardless of who they are, can they be desisted from engaging in large-scale corrupt activities which are manifested today in sophisticated corporate activities and white-collar crimes. An independent judiciary can be the only effective check on this system.
Although the Parliament exists as a debating platform for administrative activities and scrutiny of such actions, it has been seen in the past that governments have successfully bypassed the platform by subverting the effectiveness of parliament through the use of the speaker�s office and carpeting of issues. Additionally, the attendance of ministers in the sessions of Parliament needs to be ensured for an effective policy monitoring and critical analysis of governmental actions. The judiciary issue is in effect also another of our problem, which although being mentioned finally as the greatest problems that faces us all as well as the new government-in-waiting, is the greatest of all problems which must be resolved and the reinstatement issue must be discussed as being proposed by the leading parties, PML(N) and now more actively, by the PPP.
An independent judiciary goes far beyond issues such as those which are deemed to be merely �constitutional� by those who seek to dodge the crises rather than address it seriously and move on towards resolving it. Such elements consistently point to �economic issues� as well as �security issues� as paramount thereby implying that the judicial issue can be avoided and be dealt with maybe at a later stage and perhaps pushed under the carpet for the moment. Political parties must desist from such tactics which would have drastic consequences. It has been seen that the judiciary has exposed the government in the recent past when it has tried to usurp its powers in the name of �privatizations� and resource generation which was in fact a ploy to loot national assets. Without accountability and transparency, which is ensured with the help of an independent judiciary, any move to lift the country out of other crises threatens to be short-lived with limited effects.
Perhaps the accountability factor of an independent judiciary is an impediment towards the goals of governments which have in the past used the state machinery to promote the interests of its members. It has been seen how the NRO has successfully absolved Mr. Zardari of all the cases in which allegedly billions were looted by him. On top of this a lot has also been spent on the pursuit of such cases by governments, paid at public expense of course.
One cannot ignore but stress the importance of a free press which is another effective pillar of the state and a check on the government of the day. Along with the judiciary, the press faces a common enemy which is the government of the day. Having great tendencies to adopt secrecy in lieu of transparency and accountability, governments have never been comfortable with a free press which exposes administrative actions in public and subject elected representatives to electoral accountability in an increasingly vibrant society which thanks to the press is more enlightened, which allows them to enjoy the fruits of democracy and making governments as they should be-by them, of them and for them, as once famously said.
It is encouraging that coalitions between traditional enemies are in the offing thanks to a matured form of politics which is apparent at the moment. Although the difference over the reinstatement issue seems to be the biggest hurdle between PML(N) and PPP, an eagerness to work together for the sake of democracy is an encouraging sign for the future of democracy and parliamentary sovereignty. However, a common ground must be reached soon enough on the judiciary issue or the coalition will fall apart sooner than it took to get the two in the same camp, hand-in-hand. It is true that differences over the issue between the two parties have some history now and have not just cropped up in the recent past all of a sudden. However, one side, the PML(N) has adopted a consistent stance, refusing to bow down to pressure by the establishment or inducements of ministerial posts by its PPP partner. On the other hand we have the fluctuating position of PPP, which has swayed like a pendulum over its position on the issue. The same is true about accepting General Musharraf as president with PML(N) adopting a harsh stance and PPP, sensitive to the public opinion in the pre-election period, having asked General Musharraf to resign in a not so distant past, now looks set to accept him as president and work with him.
Unless the two sides find common grounds soon, the foundations of the National Assembly would be built upon loose blocks and it would be a matter of time before the building comes crashing down. Faced with an APDM, which would provide fresh impetus to the lawyers� movement along with civil rights activists, time is of an essence to the representatives of the people arriving at a common a solution towards finding the right solution, acceptable to all in the Parliament. APDM has wisely allowed times to the peoples� representatives to reach a consensus on the issue. With nothing to loose, APDM and the lawyers� movement looks set to go on overdrive soon if a solution is not founded for the crises within a reasonable period of time. The problems of the elected representatives are compounded enough to be dealing with such an issue and their attention must be focused on other pressing issues after finding a just solution to this issue first.
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