Zero tolerance for dictatorship: Military coups take centre stage in National Assembly

Govt, opposition call for united front, draw parallels between current and past political situations.

ISLAMABAD:

A fierce debate on military takeovers raged during Friday’s National Assembly session.

As the memogate controversy continues to spark tension in the country, the government and opposition members called for a united front when a member of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) began drawing parallels between the current political situation and circumstances in the past that led to military takeovers by former dictators Ziaul Haq and Pervez Musharraf.

“Conspiracies are being hatched in the country…a piece of paper [the memo] is being used to achieve specific objects,” PML-N MNA Ayaz Amir said while referring to the replies submitted on Thursday by army chief General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Ahmed Shuja Pasha to the Supreme Court.

There is a need to understand the “bottom line” of what was submitted to the apex court, Amir said. “It’s the same as what happened back in 1979 and 1999. It’s alarming,” he added.

An equally high-sounding rhetoric was heard from the Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) former information secretary Fauzia Wahab, who urged the government and opposition members to unite to protect the parliament, “the seat of democracy”.

“We should be proud of our association with this parliament … this is the institution that provides a policy, a system to the nation,” Wahab said.

“It is a mission for all of us to protect the sanctity of this house. We should not let anybody disgrace it,” she added.

Being more explicit, Wahab advised parliament to resist all “forces” that were hatching conspiracies against the institution. “No matter what happens, we should not let any memo, or any court case, harm parliament,” Wahab said, echoing the response that the government submitted to the Supreme Court in one of the country’s most controversial legal cases.

Earlier, another PML-N member drew a parallel between December 16, 1971 when Pakistan was dismembered to give birth to Bangladesh and the May 2 raid this year when American commandoes violated the country’s sovereignty and killed Osama bin Laden.

Lawmaker Chaudhry Barjees Tahir criticised the military’s failures in both incidents, in 1971 and on May 2 this year, terming them “humiliating examples of defeat”.

“You [military men] all were the protectors of our frontiers. What did you do?” he inquired.

New bill introduced

A bill was introduced in the National Assembly seeking to amend the Airport Security Force Act of 1975, envisaging new service cadres of personnel.

But the house, once again, deferred another key legislation seeking the establishment of an independent human rights commission.

Meanwhile, Engineer Amir Muqqam of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) once again requested that the government accept his resignation as federal minister, which he submitted months ago over differences with the party. “Kindly accept my resignation and give me the perks of a member of the National Assembly,” he added.

Abdul Qadir Baloch, a retired lieutenant general, urged the government to release development funds for Balochistan, saying, “I don’t know what is keeping the government from addressing Balochistan’s grievances.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 17^th, 2011.