Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani not only refused to accept Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Nisar Ali Khan’s nominees for an independent commission to probe the Abbottabad operation but also rejected his advice to form the independent commission under the Commission of Inquiry Act 1956. Nisar sent a letter to the prime minister on May 18 asking formation of an independent commission and made it public on Wednesday. Gilani ignored Nisar’s advice that the commission shall complete its inquiry and submit its report to parliament within 30 days of its notification. Expressing reservation over the five-member commission, Nisar said the prime minister had not consulted him before forming the commission which was against the unanimous resolution passed by joint sitting of parliament.
In his letter, the opposition leader said neither did the government consult him nor did it take him into confidence on the issue. Nisar also suggested seven names to be included in the commission including Justice (r) Shafiur Rehman, Justice (r) Nasir Aslam Zahid, Justice (r) Fakhrud Din G Ebrahim, Majeed Nizami, Mehmood Khan Achakzai, Asma Alamgir and Justice (r) Bhagwan Das. About the terms of reference of the commission, Nisar suggested that the commission should ascertain the facts regarding the presence of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan and the US operation on May 2, determine the nature and causes of failures of the civil and military authorities in dealing with the matter, determine whether there are any agreements, tacit or explicit for allowing such an operation in Pakistan, whether such agreements are legally and constitutionally valid, and fix responsibility for and propose actions against persons responsible for the failures compromising, dignity, self-respect and sovereignty of Pakistan and recommend remedial measures.
The letter further stated that the commission may, for the effective performance of its functions, co-opt and summon any person in the services of Pakistan and any other person to render such assistance to the commission as it may require. “The commission shall formulate its own procedure as may be deemed necessary and shall have all the powers conferrable on a commission under the 1956 Act,” the leader of the opposition said in his letter. Nisar said he was sure the resolution provided an excellent framework for formulating a comprehensive national security strategy which enjoyed the backing and support of all political parties and other stakeholders.
“For this purpose, it is necessary that we set our individual or separate party and political compulsions and instantly avail this opportunity arising as it does out of a national tragedy of immense proportions,” the letter said. Nisar’s letter read in his opinion, the commission should be broad-based possibly including retired members of the judiciary and the bureaucracy as well as members of the civil society. “The basic criterion for eligibility must be an unblemished and incontrovertible reputation for integrity and competence,” he said.
