And the general lack of importance given to parliament
Ishaq Dar got to present the final budget of this government – vowing to present the next one as well – without any interruptions and it was televised. It was therefore only fair that the opposition leader got the chance to express his reservations over the budget in the same uncensored manner to the general public. That however would have been indigestible by the government – unable to tolerate criticism – which did not allow Khursheed Shah’s speech to be televised.
Back in 2013 a beleaguered PML-N got some respite when the PPP, during the PTI Dharna decided to remain in parliament rather than join Imran Khan outside it. During the proceedings of the National Assembly that followed, Aitzaz Ahsan of the PPP wasted no opportunity to thrash the senior leaders of the ruling party sitting across the opposition benches and it was all televised.
That was then, now that there is relatively less need for the opposition’s support the government has yet again managed to annoy them to the extent that they have decided to hold the current National Assembly session outside of parliament following a walkout earlier.
A similar attitude persists in the Senate as well particularly on the controversial issue of Pakistan joining the Saudi Arabia-led military alliance. Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani was irked by the non-serious attitude of both the Defence and Foreign ministries as they were missing from the proceedings on the issue and neither is willing to accept that it comes under their domain.
The trademark secrecy of the PML-N in important matters such as CPEC and the Saudi alliance for example creates controversy and suspicion. When asked to explain their position they make themselves unavailable and make every attempt to muzzle the opposition.
It is no surprise therefore that the leader of the house rarely attends the lower house and is yet to attend the upper house in his four years as prime minister. Such an attitude towards parliament is a disservice to democracy and should be taken seriously.
