Something the PML-N is already tainted with
The parliamentary democracy follows some traditions that are considered sacred. An important one among those requires the presence of the prime minister in important sittings of the house. This gives a chance not only to the opposition benches but also to the treasury benches to get first-hand information from the head of the government regarding what’s going on in the country. A disregard of this democratic norm means the government itself does not trust in the working of the institutions, and prefers working above them, or at least around them.
This lack of trust in the prime political institution of the country, the Parliament, has been shown by not only the incumbent Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, but also by his party leaders who were voted to represent the constituents in, ironically, the house. But as Interior Minister Ch Nisar was rightly agitated the other day, ministers from the ruling PML-N don’t appear to give it any importance; they have been absent in such numbers that the parliamentary sessions had to be adjourned because of a lack of quorum, twice. Even worse, the prime minister himself has been absent from the house for over six months, all the while when he didn’t miss a single opportunity to go on official visits to a number of countries. Ch Nisar did issue a warning to those who won’t mark an attendance in the next session, but it appears his warnings don’t carry much weight. Interestingly, former prime minister, PPP’s Yousaf Raza Gilani, regularly graced the parliament with his presence and even started that noble tradition of a question hour. But the PML-N’s apparent lack of interest in strengthening democratic norms is what is troubling for every Pakistani who wants to see the change they have been dreaming, and promised, for long.
Important issues that need to be discussed remain in limbo if the government doesn’t actively engage in a debate with the opposition whose job it is to point out what it considers the government is doing wrong. For example, the opposition was interested in discussing what was going on with the IP gas pipeline but there were no relevant minister to satisfy their questions, at least not till late. This is not a democratic way to run government; it is more like personal fiefdom, and Nawaz Sharif must know that this won’t work anymore.
