Hold on to Constitution for democracy to succeed

Workshop at UoP discusses merits and failures of governance systems

PESHAWAR: With democracy evolving over time, the key ingredient for the governance system to work is for all stakeholders to tightly hold on to the Constitution.

This was stated by speakers during a three-day workshop on “Democracy: An Alternative Narrative”. The workshop had been organised at the University of Peshawar (UoP) by the International Research Council for Religious Affairs (IRCRA) and the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII).

CII Secretary Dr Ikramul Haq stressed the need for citizens to exercise their right to vote.

Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Assembly member from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Ayesha Bano said that amongst all the different forms of government currently in vogue in the world, democracy is the most applicable and benefits the public the most regardless of the costs involved.

IRCRA President Muhammad Israr spoke about the work done by his organization. He also accentuated upon the fact that the top leaderships of all schools of thought and political parties unanimously signed the Constitution which had been drafted and approved in 1973.

“It is mandatory for us to hold it dear,” Israr exhorted.

Political and security analyst Rahimullah Yousafzai lamented the role being played by the media, adding that they are responsible for shaping the public perception. Hence, it is incumbent upon them to step forward and play their part in ensuring that democracy prevails in Pakistan.

UoP Political Science Department’s Dr Aamer Raza and Dr Ayub Jan, IRCRA Executive Director Tahmeed Jan, Dr Sultan Mehmood, and others interacted with participants— which comprised religious scholars, editors, and imams.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 21^st, 2019.