Shehbaz’s call for accountability

Across the board, please!

There is nothing wrong with the observation, really, that accountability should be across the board. A country on the march towards progressive, liberal democracy should not have mega corruption scandals like Ogra, Punjab Bank, NICL, Nandipur, Swiss Bank accounts, etc., as the Punjab chief minister rightly implied. But it leaves a little to be desired, to say the least, when a senior leader of the ruling party laments about unchecked high-level corruption. If there are indeed crooks aplenty roaming the land under their watch, what is really keeping the Sharifs from bringing them to book, as per their duty?

Clearly the House of Sharif is more than just a little unhinged by the goings on with regard to the JIT. And it is never really a coincidence that whenever the spotlight comes to focus on the Sharifs, there is a suddenly flurry of threats, intimidation and, often enough, leaks. So count on the Nihal Hashmi episode, as well as the matter of Hussain Nawaz’s photograph, to play out a little longer. Also, while PML-N loudmouths vent their frustration on PTI, they must realise that it was not for the latter to drag the former to the Supreme Court in the aftermath of the Panama leaks. Unfortunately, in our Islamic Republic, no government has empowered independent institutions to the point of challenging the rich and powerful through legal procedure; hence some manner of opposition must step in to fill the gap.

Still, Shahbaz Sharif is spot on about corruption, even if he overlooks the reason for his family ending in the dock every now and then. And, to follow through on his brilliant idea, the ruling party should make sure that crooks are no longer allowed to walk unchallenged in Pakistan. As the ruling party in the centre and Punjab for a while yet, let the PML-N set the standard for transparent and thorough accountability, regardless of whom the axe falls on once the findings are complete. At least that way the Sharifs would no longer be unduly singled out, and they would also have kept their promise of ensuring accountability. Let Shahbaz put his administrative muscle where his complaining mouth is.