Parliament ponders: Who to blame for law and order mess?

Opposition, religious right, agencies all blame each other.


Qamar Zaman September 06, 2012

ISLAMABAD:


Who is responsible for the prevalent law and order chaos in the country?


The question prompted heated debate on the floor of the lower house of parliament on Wednesday.

Lawmakers from across the benches attempted to place responsibility on all quarters, save theirs, with right wing politicians saying it was unfair to blame them for resurgent sectarianism.

Opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz’s (PML-N) firebrand lawmaker Khawaja Saad Rafiq called for fresh polls on the pretext of government’s failure to maintain law and order in the country.

Rafiq asked the government a very pointed question: who is responsible for national security?

“Is it the army, the agencies, the ISI, Interior Minister Rehman Malik, the prime minister or the president,” Rafiq asked.

He listed recent incidents of targeted and sectarian killings in Gilgit-Baltistan, Balochistan and Karachi, adding that police pickets in every city is not the solution. Political will is required to address this and several other issues but the government and the opposition are busy blaming each other, he said.

Rafiq urged the political leadership to sit together and devise a strategy to address this menace, and asked the government to take the army and judiciary into confidence as well.

Religious leadership’s responsibility

Ruling Pakistan Peoples Party’s Nadeem Afzal Gondal rose to respond to Rafiq, but said that he ‘almost agreed with what had been stated.”

Gondal went on to justify his party’s rule, saying “whoever comes to power, clings to it and enjoys it.”

He shifted the responsibility of the law and order situation on religious discord, asking the religious leadership of the country and the PML-N to convene an all-parties’ conference on law and order.

“What we need today is political reconciliation and religious dialogue,” Gondal said.

He also hit out at rightwing politicians sitting in the house.

“I am surprised the ulema are not taking up this issue, but had wasted no time in congregating against drone attacks on the platform of Difa-e-Pakistan Council,” he said.

“Religious scholars are the one who can play a lead role at this juncture,” Gondal added.

Fazl terms responsibility ‘unjust’

Gondal’s baton was picked up by chief of his own faction of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who bemoaned the shifting of responsibility for poor law and order situation on religious groups.

“It is unjustified to shift the entire burden of uncontrollable law and order situation on the religious segment of society,” Fazl said. The leadership of religious parties has played its role for religious harmony and ‘never’ fueled the fire of intolerance and sectarianism, the JUI-F chief said.

He did acknowledge though that there were elements who wanted to promote sectarianism and intolerance.

“These elements are used either by agencies or the government to achieve their targets,” he said, adding that such elements can be traced within political parties and even the government.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 6th, 2012.

COMMENTS (1)

Mubashir | 11 years ago | Reply

Well of course its the Rulers who are responsible. The Parliament, the Government Opposition.. all of them. I wonder why isn't anyone talking about the UN Fact finding mission coming to Baluchistan. We are all fighting for our Petty Wars to safeguard our Interests. No one really cares for the country.

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