PTI’s flak moment

The axe of Election Commission has fallen heavily on PTI. The electoral watchdog ruled that the party has willingly defied information and concealed accounts. ECP asked as to why the funds to the tune of millions of dollars should not be confiscated? PTI, despite pleading its case for months and months, seems to be caught off guard. One way or the other, its homework was poor, to say the least. The unanimous verdict confirmed that the political party received funding from prohibited sources, and that it pertains to 34 foreign nationals and 351 offshore-based companies. The charge-sheet goes on to reveal that PTI only disclosed eight accounts, whereas it hid 13 and failed to mention three more. This is a startling omission as far as responsibility of the party secretariat is concerned, and stands in violation of law and constitution.

The genre of the verdict from ECP was widely expected. Even PTI was sure that it would not get a clean chit. Apparently, the party was aware of skeletons in the cupboard but for reasons best known to it, it deliberately played to the gallery and kept on reassuring itself that all is well in the books. This paranoid assumption got flak for it. ECP pointed out that the data obtained from the State Bank reveals that all the 13 accounts disowned by PTI were opened and operated by senior stalwarts. Thus, it said non-disclosure and concealment of 16 bank accounts by PTI is a ‘serious lapse’ and in violation of Article 17(3) of the Constitution.

As far as PTI is concerned, there are many slips. It consoles its constituents primarily by saying that it is a case of ‘prohibited funds’ and not one of ‘foreign funding’. Secondly, it says that ECP treaded beyond its jurisdiction to prove the case against the party, and has vowed to challenge it in the court of law. Last but not least is the diatribe as to why only single out PTI when other parties too are recipients of such blatant funds from a host of shady and foreign channels. But the point is that two wrongs do not make a right. The party will have to do some serious soul-searching as to how it got stuck in the quagmire of illicit and unaudited accounts, and what hampered its financial gurus from coming out clean.

This slur has come at a time when PTI was at the zenith of its popularity, and was pushing for general elections. The beleaguered coalition government, it seems, will leave no stone unturned to browbeat PTI, and it has already resolved to proceed against it as per the recommendations of ECP. The most disturbing outcome is the fact that ECP has termed party Chairman Imran Khan’s disclosure as grossly inaccurate. This comes as the biggest blow to his impeccable character and a lot of fence-mending will be required to overcome the notion in public. The party stands censured. It must come out clean. The party’s denial syndrome has cost it dearly.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 3^rd, 2022.

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