- Road to general election
That the Senate poll was held on time, after all, is indeed a victory for the democratic process in the country – even if it will stand out for the rather low quality of candidates fielded (especially from PML-N) and the poor manner in which it was conducted. Uncertainty stemming from the Balochistan coup, of sorts, and the SC ruling removing Nawaz Sharif as party head had not just badly polarised the political process, but also paralysed the economy and prompted an investor exodus from the capital market. Therefore, hopefully the right lessons will have been learnt and the fight for the general election will not feature outside developments that hurt the country more than help it.
All attention will now turn to the election of chairman and deputy chairman of the Upper House. PPP’s unexpected good show means the exercise will not be as straight forward as the ruling party would have wanted. PML-N will, of course, not just dictate the proceedings from a position of much strength, but also squeeze political mileage all the way to the May election. Nawaz may have been tossed from the PM seat and PML-N leadership, but the party that now dominates both Houses is still clearly loyal to him. These dynamics will no doubt come to the fore as the ruling party is expected to leverage its new majority and legislate a little clipping of the wings of other institutions, particularly the judiciary.
However, a big questions mark still hangs over Saturday’s exercise. Accusations of horse-trading, especially outright buying of votes (involving, allegedly, astronomical sums) put an ugly blot on our politicians’ claims of advancing democracy, etc. With the chairman and deputy chairman votes due shortly, yet more money is expected to flood through the Upper House. Such actions not only lower the stature of our self-styled defenders of democracy, but also give other actors and institutions the space and rationale to interfere. Perhaps, in time, our politicians will realise that they, more than others, reduce the sanctity of the House.