Circular route
Surely, the future of the country is more important than an official request typed out on letter-headed paper.
We are going around in circles, with events stuck — like a faulty film in a DVD player — at a stationary point. Here it winds round and round, without really moving forward. The Supreme Court has now given the new prime minister time till July 25 to write the letter to the Swiss authorities, seeking the reopening of graft cases dating back to the 1990s against President Asif Ali Zardari and his late wife Benazir Bhutto. It was this matter, of course, that resulted in the conviction and subsequent disqualification of the last prime minister. We simply cannot have a replay of events; that is the last thing that Pakistan needs right now, given the instability that this would cause at a time when more than anything else, we require a period of calm.
Legal experts, meanwhile, continue to question the new law passed by parliament, protecting office-bearers against contempt proceedings. Many of them appear to believe that it will eventually be struck down. But beyond the legalities, the issue is really not quite so relevant. The fact of the matter is that the Constitution grants immunity to the president and the Swiss authorities have already said that given this, no action will be possible on their part.
Given these circumstances, we wonder why there is so much insistence on writing that letter. Surely, the future of the country is more important than an official request typed out on letter-headed paper. What then are the compulsions that are driving the matter on and on? We need to think about the problem with an open mind at this point in time. Logic must dictate what happens next, with the interests of the country and its nascent democracy put above everything else. The fact of the matter is that we simply cannot afford repeated stand-offs between the judiciary and the executive. It is essential that all institutions work together, putting commonsense above all else and following the supreme law of the land. If this does not happen, we will be destined for more trouble and even greater chaos in the weeks ahead.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2012.
Legal experts, meanwhile, continue to question the new law passed by parliament, protecting office-bearers against contempt proceedings. Many of them appear to believe that it will eventually be struck down. But beyond the legalities, the issue is really not quite so relevant. The fact of the matter is that the Constitution grants immunity to the president and the Swiss authorities have already said that given this, no action will be possible on their part.
Given these circumstances, we wonder why there is so much insistence on writing that letter. Surely, the future of the country is more important than an official request typed out on letter-headed paper. What then are the compulsions that are driving the matter on and on? We need to think about the problem with an open mind at this point in time. Logic must dictate what happens next, with the interests of the country and its nascent democracy put above everything else. The fact of the matter is that we simply cannot afford repeated stand-offs between the judiciary and the executive. It is essential that all institutions work together, putting commonsense above all else and following the supreme law of the land. If this does not happen, we will be destined for more trouble and even greater chaos in the weeks ahead.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 14th, 2012.