Tightening of the noose

Sharif in a cul de sac?

Finally the apex court has broken its stony silence on formation of a judicial commission to probe the Panama leaks. It has termed the TORs (terms of reference) provided by the government as simply unworkable.

Thus the opposition’s stance that the government is stonewalling the issue has been vindicated. The prime minister will have to act soon to negotiate with the opposition not only on workable and time-bound TORs but also initiate fresh legislation to facilitate the probe.

In a parliamentary system the prime minister attending the parliament session being a matter of routine is not news. But in case of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who rarely ventures to either the National Assembly or Senate, it is news.

He was scheduled to attend the National Assembly session on Friday to give a policy statement on Panama leaks. But ostensibly Sharif got cold feet. The whole exercise has now been postponed on the pretext that the ailing leader of the opposition, Khursheed Shah, would be well enough to attend the session on Monday.

Strangely, Sharif says he will not be addressing any questions regarding his family members name appearing in the Panama papers. For that purpose, he thinks the judicial commission will be the proper forum. But judging from CJP Anwar Zaheer Jamali’s acerbic response on the issue, he will have to come up with certain specifics in the parliament.

It is obvious that the prime minister is not yet willing to come off his high horse and take off his knight armour. Perhaps, refusing to smell the coffee beans, he seems to be oblivious to the gravity of the crisis brewing around him.

But judging from the PML-N minions running helter-skelter on different TV channels every evening, virtually abusing the opposition, conceivably this is not the case. Perhaps they do not have a cogent answer to the queries raised by the opposition. That is why offense being the best defense strategy has been adopted.

We learn through careful leaks in a section of the media, through journalists sympathetic to the Sharif cause, that Imran Khan also owned an off shore company through which he purchased a flat in London. Similarly Jahangir Tareen and Aleem khan are termed guilty as charged.

Aitzaz Ahsan, for leading the charge, is being especially singled out for criticism. Ludicrous allegations are being made that Musharraf awarded his wife an LNG quota or that he cannot be even elected a councilor on his own.

It seems that Sharif, instead of taking the bull by the horns and coming up with a credible and cogent explanation for the wealth of his family abroad, has simply pressed the panic button. It is being claimed that his sons, as adults living abroad, have bought these properties from their earned wealth and through legitimate transfers. And that since their father is not named in the Papers he does not need to give an explanation to the parliament.

If building roads irrigation networks and providing power was the sole criteria of governance the British Raj was doing a fine if not a better job. They were also engaged in institution building in the social and health sectors

Only as a special concession to the opposition’s demands he has condescended to appear before the commission. If it was so then what is the rumpus all about? Why is the whole PML-N apparatus geared towards defending the first family without actually specifically answering any of the questions being asked by the opposition?

Sadly, with a pervasive sense of uncertainty hanging in the air, the whole nation seems to be consumed by the Panamagate. On the other hand the government has failed to announce its team to talk about the TORs of the proposed commission.

The army chief and the prime minister finally had a one-on-one meeting after a gap of more than five weeks. Reportedly the COAS urged Sharif to expedite resolution of the Panama leaks crisis.

The Prime Minister House spokesman, urging the media to desist from making speculations, has denied any mention of Panama leaks in the meeting. Ominously, virtually all media outlets carried reports that General Raheel Sharif did discuss the Panama crisis with the prime minister.

The fact that the ISPR did not issue a presser on the meeting points towards a deliberate leak. Obviously no third person was present during the khaki and mufti Sharifs’ meeting. Hence it is obvious that a definite and carefully calibrated message has been conveyed through the media.

The message is loud and clear: the opposition as well as the ubiquitous establishment, and now the apex court also, have put Sharif on notice. Instead of beating about the bush and hiding behind technicalities, he has to come up with a cogent answer to the questions raised by the opposition sooner than later.

The opposition has announced to continue with its boycott of the parliament till Monday, when the prime minister is scheduled to attend. In any case for the fourth consecutive day on Friday the National Assembly was short of quorum.

The prime minister and his ministers should be regularly seen attending the parliament, the ostensible repository of their power. If prime ministers in most parliamentary democracies attend parliament sessions why should not the Sharifs?

Cat calls, rowdiness and in extreme cases even scuffles are part of a democratic culture. The parliament is the biggest equaliser in the sense that all elected members are treated as equals in the House. But here lies the rub. Sharif, although elected by the parliament, considers reaching out to the members of the parliament on both sides of aisle as an irritant.

The simple fact is that he prefers to rule through a cabal of cronies and close associates. The federal cabinet met the other day after seven long months. This is a sad reflection on the state of health of our nascent democracy.

Nawaz Sharif, perhaps for the first time since becoming prime minister, invited a carefully selected group of journalists for lunch a fortnight ago. The whole emphasis of the meeting, through power point presentations by relevant ministers, was the fast pace of development under the PML-N government including roads, motorways, and gigantic power and gas projects. Questions relating to Panamagate and frayed civilian-military relations were literally filibustered.

The prime minister has a point when he claims that the opposition from day one has not accepted him as prime minister. In case of Imran Khan it is perhaps true but what about the PPP?

Zardari stood by him throughout 2014 PTI’s dharna. What has gone wrong now that the PPP chairperson last month checked out of Churchill Hotel London simply to avoid meeting Sharif?

The prime minister, apart from answering some tough questions about Panama leaks, should do some introspection. He needs to change his whole approach; not only towards governance but also towards dealing with the opposition as well as his own party men.

If building roads irrigation networks and providing power was the sole criteria of governance the British Raj was doing a fine if not a better job. They were also engaged in institution building in the social and health sectors.

But realising they had overstayed their welcome, they had to quit the subcontinent. Similarly, General Musharrf and most of his predecessor dictators were not doing a bad job in making the economy grow at a faster rate than the civilians. But still without exception they were booted out unceremoniously.

Similarly, unless Sharif decides to change course he will remain inexorably stuck in a political cul de sac.