The judicial commission and the parliamentary committee will shortly be set up for the appointment of judges, federal Law Minister Babar Awan said on Sunday.
Speaking to reporters at Lahore airport, he said that democracy will progress as institutions get stronger and that the people are not interested in “political cases”. Instead, he said, they want to see their problems solved. He said that even people who filed petitions on political matters or encourage other people to do so understood the consequences. The law minister said that the prices of food items in Punjab have soared “out of control”.
Stressing the need for the Punjab government to increase its efficiency, he said that if the provincial government cannot arrest proclaimed offenders, it should confine itself to combating dengue fever, instead of fighting political viruses.
He said that the political leadership should concentrate on solving the people’s problems, instead of turning the country into a political arena.
Urging the Punjab chief minister to deal with coalition MPAs in an equitable manner and provide them as much funds as are being provided to PML-N lawmakers. He said that he knew that his statements disturbed some people, but people obejected even when he kept quiet.
Reminding that he is a member of parliament’s committee on constitutional reforms, he said that it was the most appropriate forum for a parliamentarian to express his views. He said he would rather speak in the committee meetings instead of making speeches in the streets. “This should be the right option,” he added.
Awan also said that steps will be taken in the light of the Supreme Court decision on the 18th Amendment and the government will not waste any time in assisting the apex court. He said that the Election Commission will be reconstituted soon and a joint meeting of parliament has been called on 1 November which will accelerate the process of setting up these institutions.
Criticising Punjab ministers, he said they were not doing their jobs. “The is an outbreak of dengue fever virus but the health minister is not seen doing anything about it. There is no strategy for controlling the spread of the deadly disease. A task force, comprising eminent doctors and surgeons, should have been set up by now to tackle the threat.”
Babar Awan said that there has been no change in the status of his party membership, adding that he has not been suspended. He said that during all democratic eras, newspaper organisations were in the habit of printing misleading stories.
Terming them ‘paper tigers’, the law minister said that these organisations refrain from conducting surveys during dictatorship regimes because they are given “a free hand”.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 25th, 2010.
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