KARACHI:
Today, Pakistan is suffering because of the abuse of power, repetitive violation of the Constitution and resurrection of the Doctrine of Necessity. Absolute sovereignty is a divine right of the Almighty SWT and not of any elected or paid individual. It is the will of the people which must prevail.
Since 1956, Quaid-e-Azam’s ideology and basis for the creation of Pakistan have been distorted by adventurers. A society cannot function without the Rule of Law, ethics of governance and unfettered conflicts of interest by public officeholders who have pledged an oath to uphold the constitution. Yet we have witnessed either suspension or violation of the constitution, as and when it suits them. The Constitution authorizes the Supreme Court of Pakistan to interpret the constitution and not to rewrite or amend it. This power vests solely with an elected parliament provided the proposed amendment does not come in conflict with letter and spirit or changes basic structure. Unfortunately, in Pakistan, we have seen several amendments to the Constitution.
The powers given to constitutional office holders like President, Prime Minister, etc are not unfettered but subject to norms elaborated in the Constitution. We have seen repetitive abuse of power by powerful public office holders, be it issuing Statutory Regulatory Orders for vested interest, appointments in violation of merit, or allotment of state land to paid servants for performing duties, which they voluntarily offered themselves to perform. Public officeholders should not be involved in commercial activities as it reflects poorly on the country and results in a conflict of interest. They should also not hold citizenship of other countries as public officer holders cannot have split loyalties, where they pledge an oath of allegiance to another state and simultaneously claim the right to decide the fate of Pakistan.
Malik Tariq Ali
Lahore
Published in The Express Tribune, March 1st, 2023.
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