Despite the US drone attack inside Pakistan, the government declared that the country could be ruled from London
KARACHI: Pakistan is rapidly becoming a banana republic; just a few days ago, upon the revelation that Mullah Mansoor was killed by a US drone attack inside Pakistan, a big brouhaha was raised about the sovereignty of the country being infringed upon. However, when the news came that our prime minister was to undergo open-heart surgery, the same government declared that Pakistan can be ruled easily from London.
Then the media told us that the federal cabinet would pass the federal budget in an important meeting, which was presided over by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif via a video link from London. The PM Office is telling us that the prime minister was in constant contact with the federal ministers, cabinet members and others concerned. The office also said it is important to note that there are no postponements or delays in matters pertaining to the routine functioning of the state. If that is so, why do we need a prime minister at all? As a student of history, I cannot help but think of our politicians during the days when Ghulam Mohammad ruled this country through his Anglo-Indian secretary, while he was medically incapacitated due to serious illness.
Nawaz Sharif’s performance during his latest stint in government has not been all that exemplary. I wish him all the best for his recovery and I am glad his surgery went well. But he is not irreplaceable. Given the pending investigation on the Panama leaks, maybe it would be better if he stepped down from the position of prime minister. Former chief justice of Pakistan, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, minced no words in calling for the installation of an interim prime minister until Nawaz Sharif recovers and resumes office. But one thing that escaped attention is that since Article 95 was altered, nobody cared to notice it. The apex Court could be asked to interpret this ambiguity. Let us hope sanity prevails and we work for the prosperity and solidarity of the nation and the country.
Ali Ashraf Khan
Published in The Express Tribune, June 2nd, 2016.
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