System above individuals

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A tale of two addresses

The statement issued by COAS Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani should be considered as a serious realisation of previous mistakes and regarded as a fresh start for the protection and defence of the homeland. However, we Pakistanis are devoid of looking at things dispassionately and we believe that the world is geared at keeping us frustrated and we are continuously embarrassed about our existence. Honestly speaking, this tug of war between different constitutional pillars of the state is quite interesting and potentially threatening. On the one hand, the COAS is advising against monopoly of any individual or institution in outlining national interest, while on the other hand the CJP in his recent address has again outlined the canons of constitutional predominance and its supremacy over all other institutions and authorities. In short, addresses by both are a realisation of previous mistakes. The making or breaking of this nation now depends on this realisation. The longer our institutions keep working in their constitutionally provided roles, the easier it will be for this country to adapt to a stable path.

The year 2013 is an important year for all the political parties of Pakistan as it could decide their fate. The five years of democratically elected PPP-led government have proved to be very significant in this context. People have lost hope due to continuous corruption, deterioration in law and order, external and internal security threats, inflation, political instability, judicial and political failures and so on. Despite all this they have carried on with their lives. They have stuck together in upholding the democratic norms in this country. It might be because most of the political parties that participated in 2008 elections have remained part of the federal or provincial governments at one time or another. The only real opposition was from the parties that boycotted the 2008 elections due to their own political or personal reasons.

The real threat to the democratic system in Pakistan lies in the failure of the political parties to control their complexes. The politicians in the past have been found vigorously preaching the men in uniform to remain in the game of politics. The decision in Asghar Khan case has thus not only outlined the role of different constitutional offices in Pakistan but it has also pointed out the real cancer that has destroyed the political system of the country. The military regimes in the past have been able to exploit political parties in obtaining their own objectives. But with time, politicians in Pakistan have matured and have nurtured themselves to adjust to all possibilities in the coming future.

In a democratic system the real power lies in the hands of people who get to vote and thus decide about their representatives. Politicians being dependant on public have always found themselves tightly bound to public’s feelings. Interestingly, army and other institutions are also feeling themselves answerable to the public to gain support and sympathy. The acts of a few in the past have made the ones in the present more answerable. Similarly, the judiciary has chosen the path of judicial activism. The supremacy of all institutions in this context is at stake because none of them are in a habit of staying on their path. In the past, military has ruled the country while judiciary has provided necessary legal protection to them. The future of Pakistan, it seems, lies in the hands of these masters, or does it really?

Leaving aside all the corruption and other law and order problems, the real test of democratic forces in this country will now lie in the stance taken by different political parties of Pakistan. None of the political parties in Pakistan will challenge the words uttered by both CJP and COAS. However, the context of these statements will remain a topic of many a debate for a long time. The addresses of both COAS and CJP were not only aimed at their respective institutions but also at every citizen of Pakistan who has suffered due to this mistrust and insecurity between civil and military institutions.

For a normal Pakistani with a humble living and ordinary background, the issues raised by both CJP and COAS are of little value and interest. What’s right or not is not mostly decided by the people of Pakistan. Whether the people have welcomed these men in uniform or not is a different question, these usurpers of powers have always used national interest as a keyword in obtaining power. The judiciary is not proud of its questionable history. Maybe, the thick walls of ego that existed in the past between different civil and military institutions of Pakistan have started crumbling down on their own. Continuity in the process is the way to become a true democracy.

The writer can be reached at a.amjad@decurious.com

3 COMMENTS

  1. A very poorly written piece.This young man needs to first collect his thoughts then write and then reread or ask some intelligent person abreast with the affairs,to read to him repeatedly .Only then something perhaps would comeout of his effort.You are contradicting yourself in subsequent paras or sentences Mr Amjad!

  2. Democracy in this country will remain a dream & hostage in the hands of a few, as long as feudalism, tribalism, Sardars,dynastic political parties & religio-political parties, topping this is our majority uneducated masses & 53 % rural population whose votes decides this country`s fate…..educate them first, who can then come out of the slavery , differentiate between right & wrong, good & bad, realise their social rights & obligations…only then discuss " democracy "….

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