'Vested interests' at play behind amendment: Shahid Khaqan Abbasi

Ex-PM alleges 26th Amendment designed to block appointment of 'specific individual'

KARACHI:

Former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi expressed serious concerns on Tuesday over the recently passed 26th Amendment, alleging the constitutional tweaks were designed to prevent a "specific individual" from becoming next the chief justice.

Speaking to lawyers at the Karachi Bar Association, Abbasi alleged the amendment was nothing but just another facet of the ongoing "election manipulation".

Calling into question the hasty process witnessed during its passage, he added that vested interests were at play behind the move.

The leader of the Awaam Pakistan Party (APP) also urged the authorities to restore checks and balances, which he claimed had been dismantled in the wake of the amendment.

He asserted that judges should be appointed after thorough accountability processes and lamented that the amendment has altered the Constitution's basic framework.

"The Constitution is a pact between the government and the people. How can Parliament alter it so drastically without public awareness?"

The amendment mandates a parliamentary committee to decide on judicial appointments, which Abbasi argued risks politicising the judiciary.

Recalling the challenges faced by the former chief justice of Pakistan, Qazi Faez Isa, under the previous administration, Abbasi said the amendment restricts Justice Isa's successor from rising within the ranks.

He also criticised the hurried passage of the amendment, questioning whether it addresses Pakistan's most pressing issues.

Former finance minister Miftah Ismail echoed Abbasi's concerns and alleged that the incumbent government was established on a "dubious mandate," claiming that the people's choice was ignored in both the 2018 and recent elections held in February this year.

He questioned how the amendment addressed issues of judicial transparency, adding that economic reforms to benefit the public were also lacking.

"Tax burdens have been unfairly placed on salaried individuals, while wealthy capitalists enjoy subsidies," he criticised. He added that despite government claims, inflation rates remain high.