Dispelling rumours that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) would sabotage the upcoming Senate elections by resigning en masse or dissolving the Punjab government, Nawaz Sharif asserted that the 2012 elections to the upper house of Parliament will take place according to the original schedule, in March – stressing that his party had nothing to be afraid of.
“The Senate elections will take place on time and we are not afraid of anything,” said Nawaz. “There is no fear of the current Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) winning the Senate elections with a majority. There is no reason for the Senate elections to not take place.”
Earlier in August, reports surfaced that authorities in Punjab were under “strict orders” to complete major ongoing projects by October to pave way for the PML-N to use all options, including dissolving the assembly before the Senate elections.
A party source had said that PML-N top leaders had agreed to use “all options” to topple the PPP government “well before Senate elections”.
While talking to reporters after addressing a gathering in Gojar Khan, Nawaz said that his party wanted the democratic setup to continue.
“This democratic process must be continued at all costs. I don’t understand why certain quarters claim that PML-N is afraid of the Senate elections. There is no fear. They will take place on time,” Sharif said.
Meanwhile, last month, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani said that the PML-N was working very hard to bring down the PPP-led government before the Senate elections.
“There are all indications that PPP will emerge as a single largest party in Senate after the March elections with its coalition partners, and they (the PML-N leaders) want the fall of the government before March by hook or by crook,” Gilani said, while giving an interview to a private news channel in October.
The Senate is the upper house of the bi-cameral Parliament in Pakistan – with the lower house known as the National Assembly. Senators serve a six-year term, but elections to Senate are held every three years, as half its seats are put up for election each time around. Its electoral college are members of the provincial assemblies. The upper house is meant to ensure ‘continuity’ in the political system as it stays in place even with a change of governments and general elections.
Hence, the PPP-led government can get a clear majority in the Senate in March 2012, and retain a strong position in Parliament by controlling the upper house, even if it doesn’t fare well in the next general elections scheduled for 2013.
Establishment in focus
Meanwhile, taking a jibe at Imran Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Sharif said that some powers, including military agencies, want to achieve their goals by supporting a political party.
“The military agencies have been supporting and favouring a specific party in Pakistan and we have multiple proof backing this claim,” claimed Nawaz.
“There is a specific party that has unconditional support from the establishment and we have proof which establishes this favouritism.”
The PML-N leader said the military had no right to intervene in the politics of the country and said the responsibility lay with the Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani to ensure that no agency intervenes.
“It is the responsibility of the military leadership and the army chief to ensure that no intelligence agencies intervene in the politics of the country and if intelligence agencies do so, they must be stopped at all costs. Gen Kayani should personally ensure this.”
(ADDITIONAL INPUT BY NEWS DESK)
Published in The Express Tribune, November 20th, 2011.
COMMENTS (2)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
1713853507-0/MalalaHilary-(2)1713853507-0-270x192.webp)
“This democratic process must be continued at all costs". It is the masses, which are bearing the costs, while those in power or in opposition enjoy the benefits. Well said Mr. Sharif. Let the musical chairs continue.
I am not a supporter of Nawaz Sharif; however, he is behaving more mature politician and a real patriot when it comes to the future of the country. NS has neutralized the plans of deep state to sabotage the civilian govt on more than one occasion. All democratic forces should salute this mature and principled stand of NS. Imran Khan failed to differentiate his party from Mush’s King Party and PML-Q league. In addition there is almost everything in common between PTI and PML-N. What now differentiates the two parties is a solid stand of NS for the supremacy of democracy and not being used by the establishment. NS has set up a high standard for the other parties now.