KARACHI – Democracy is our privilege and right, but it is no more than a mere slogan of all mainstream parties of this country. More than 50 million are “represented” by 168, but of those, only a handful justify the responsibility of being our representatives. There was only one message to take away from Tuesday’s Sindh Assembly session: political culture is autocratic even in times of democracy.
Had you shut your eyes at Tuesday’s session, you would have imagined yourself in the midst of some galli-mohalla spat. Instead it was our legislators arguing what constituted legal privilege. Worse still, there was much hypocrisy in the entire exchange, putting all notions of reconciliation to shame.
Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid’s (PML-Q) Shaharyar Mahar had moved a privilege motion seeking punitive action against the director of IBA Sukkur, Nisar Siddiqi. The language of the resolution referenced the director as another “Tom, Dick or Harry” – something that Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) legislators rightly objected to. After all, no citizen of the country should be degraded.
But hang on, Local Government Minister Agha Siraj Durrani labelled a regional police officer as a “do takay ka bureaucrat” on Monday, and all legislators backed him. If Shaharyar Mahar’s language was offensive, so was Durrani’s. Senior Minister Pir Mazharul Haq assured Durrani of action against the bureaucrat, all Shaharyar Mahar got was the title of “liar and bigot.” Let’s keep the policy consistent, folks.
Rewind to the last government, when the PPP was in opposition and Muzaffar Shah was the speaker. The PPP had accused him of bias, of bulldozing procedures. Tuesday’s session was a repeat performance, only that the roles had reversed.
Durrani and Shaharyar Mahar may both be in the right in their respective cases; they may turn out to be in the wrong. Their democratic privilege, specially as representatives of Sindh, allows them to remain innocent unless proven otherwise.
This logic was obviously discounted by PPP’s Sharjeel Inam Memon and Anwar Mahar, who took advantage Stand-in Speaker Shehla Raza’s indecision in allowing or barring the privilege motion and sparked a rumpus against Shaharyar Mahar.
“Apologise to the PPP first, then we shall consider your privilege motion,” shouted Memon. “He is a liar! He should be ashamed for deceiving the house,” argued Anwar Mahar. Pir Mazharul Haq chimed in with his explanation on the matter in not-so-thinly-veiled attacks on Shaharyar Mahar, but each time, he would innocently state: “I am not accusing anyone, why are you getting angry?”
Were we to go on their word, there was an extortionist and a land grabber in the midst of innocent, respectable men and women. No sir, those in the gallery were in the midst of unruly and rowdy individuals pretending to represent you and me.
Stand-in Speaker Shehla Raza decided, more as a matter of routine, to expunge all abusive language from the records of proceedings. Here’s what I would like you to not expunge from memory about politicians of this age:
1. Might is right, and democracy is all about numbers. Its about who can shout the loudest and drown the pleas of the other
2. Grace is non-existent among politicians, despite the smiles and sweet talking
3. Selective memories are great and observers are fools, assume all politicians
4. Talk about everything and anything, except the issue at hand
5. The greatest fallacy of our age is that there is some difference between political parties and their culture. In fact, there is none
Let the records show that the most august house of the province was shamed by its legislators. After all, it’s a matter of privilege. Our privilege.
