Resignations’ ruse
PTI’s resignations are turning out to be its Achilles heel. The fact that their legitimacy is under debate all these months — with the Speaker National Assembly looking the other way round while accepting them — has become a political nuisance. The legislators of the ousted government of Prime Minister Imran Khan thought it appropriate to quit the National Assembly, hoping that absence of almost half of the house will make a difference. The explicit intention was to pull down the coalition government of PDM and allies that was ushered in on a wafer-thin majority of two votes. But that did not happen to this day, and as the Westminster dictum goes, it has survived in all exigency.
The absentee-opposition’s one more attempt on Thursday to seek an audience with the Speaker has raised a couple of qualified questions. One; why is the Speaker sticking to his guns of signing off each and every resignation in person? Two; what prevents the PTI legislators from appearing individually, and letting the buck stop at the Speaker’s door? The PTI had all the time on earth to overcome the riddle and walk out as a free bird by tendering a handwritten memo. Third; if appearing in person is the benchmark, then how did the Speaker accept 11 MNAs papers even in their absence? The equation boils down to the logic that it is all politics at the end of the day, and one which is upping the ante in an environment of mistrust and instability.
There is certainly an untold story behind this tussle, and both the warring parties have moles to hide. The impression that some of the PTI legislators want to return to the parliament to put up a more brave face as a valid opposition is worth-pondering. Likewise, the government believes that once the MNAs resign en bloc legally, it will open floodgates for new elections — granting a shot in the PTI’s arm. But one thing is for sure, resigning is a fundamental right, and the principle of stepping down should never be politicised with ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’. The PTI’s collective will is in need of being heard.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 31st, 2022.
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