A rich man’s world

The new report by the Pakistan Institute for Legislative Development and Transparency (Pildat) on the assets on MNAs is revealing in the sense that it lays out, in stark black and white, the fact that in our country politics is a game of rich men — and women. The possibility that anyone from a middle or lower income group could claim a seat in parliament seems to be becoming more remote by the year. The study, based on assets declared by the MNAs at various junctures and on Election Commission data shows that on average MNAs have trebled their wealth over a six-year period. While the details regarding the wealth of individuals, topped by Mehboobullah Jan from Kohistan who states his assets to be a whopping Rs3.288 billion are anecdotally interesting, we must ask if they are especially relevant. There is no sin in being rich provided the money was honestly acquired. It is possible that there are other MNAs who have not declared their assets or made only partial disclosures. The declarations by those who head the list are in fact rather creditable. Certainly they are an improvement on previous lists which suggested politicians, including prime ministers and ministers, known for their wealth, owned little.


The restriction of political space chiefly to the moneyed sections of our society is unfortunate and means that the interests of the vast majority of people are not represented by those who sit in the National Assembly. Only an individual living on a limited budget can understand the agony of inflation or of utility bills that climb steadily. In this context, what is needed is some kind of campaign finance reform, which limits electioneering budgets. We already have a law for this but the Election Commission is not able to effectively able to play its role. Until that happens, parliament will remain a rich man’s world.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 16^th, 2010.