With Gilani hell bent on becoming a sacrificial lamb for Zardari’s US $60 million, the hour of judgment has tolled for the man from Multan. A seven-member larger Supreme Court (SC) Bench headed by Justice Nasirul Mulk hearing the NRO implementation case. ruled that “the show cause notice being under sub-section 2 of Section 17 of the Contempt of Court Ordinance 2007, the Prime Minister (PM) should appear personally before the court of Jan 19 to ask why he should not be proceeded in contempt of court.”
Despite the reconciliatory gesture of having Aitzaz Ahsan a man well respected by the SC and one of the best legal brains of the country (and ironically someone who could well replace him as PM) to represent him on Jan 19 , we will know today if the rule of law is supreme in the country and not the law of the jungle that with Gilani’s active help Zardari and his crimes have meticulously infected the body politic of Pakistan with in the name of democracy. As Justice Fakhruddin Ebrahim aptly stated, when the rule of law is not obeyed anarchy will step in. That creeping anarchy has now gathered momentum in the ‘anything goes’ scenario prevailing in Pakistan. Going by the vacillation, inconsistency and legal obstructionism that has become the hallmark of the PPP-led Coalition government in matters before the SC one cannot be certain what comes next. To quote Ch. Shujaat “There are elements in the PPP which want the government to become political martyr by locking in a fight and this obsession is driving them to be in the combat mode.”
The PM may not have outdone Babar Awan who is a class of his own in ridiculing the apex court, but given his open defiance how can anyone expect the people to respect the laws of the country? Even through the SC has exercised tremendous judicial restraint and pragmatism over the tactics employed by this government, contemptuous arrogance appears to have now become the rule. Suspending Babar Awan’s licence temporarily had no effect on him, by both civil and body language he continued to flout the basic tenets of his vocation. Babar Awan reflects the govt’s fake credentials of democracy, PPP’s frontline lawyer shamelessly continues to flout the blatant lie that he has a PhD degree! On this count alone, he should be barred from politics, let alone be allowed practice law. Why indeed did Babar Awan head for the Presidency directly after his disbursement, only because systematic contempt for the rule of law emanates practiced by those who control PPP today from the Presidency.
Relations with the military authorities have been disharmonious because of some controversial clauses in the Kerry-Lugar Bill, is it a coincidence that the language is exactly the same as in the Mansoor Ijaz-Haqqani Memo? What do Zardari and Gilani hope to gain by provoking the Armed Forces and go down the route of the boot? The perception of being done in by the sword will fool the world to camouflage their corruption far better than partaking from the legal poison chalice on offer.
Seeing through their deadly game of seeking political martyrdom at their hands, for once the military hierarchy exercised patience despite the simmering unrest in the rank and file at their popular COAS and DG ISI being badmouthed at will.
The people of Pakistan continue to suffer from problems that warrant immediate attention and remedy thereof. The economic decline threatens the very fabric of the nation, the chronic energy shortages promise only more darker days, and not the least, the on-going militancy threatens not only our way of life but our very existence. Instead of coping with a vast array of domestic challenges — from growing public frustrations about crippling power cuts, gas sabotages etc to widespread poverty and corruption, our elected representatives are only intent upon engaging in power struggles so as to cling on to power and perpetuate their corrupt rule. What should one make of the “pro-democracy resolution” that passed by the National Assembly on Jan 16 a bunch of Neros fiddling aimlessly while Rome burns?
The Constitutional clause that the PM faces before the SC reads: “A person shall be disqualified from being elected or chosen as and from being a member of Parliament if (g) he has been convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction for propagating any opinion or acting in any manner, prejudicial to the ideology or the sovereignty, integrity or security of Pakistan, or independence of the judiciary of Pakistan, or which defames or brings into ridicule the judiciary or the Armed Forces of Pakistan, unless a period of five years has elapsed since his release.” As Zardari’s sacrificial offering, Gilani can himself have no doubt he not only is guilty of all of the above on Zardari’s count he has much to answer for on his own account. This democracy has become hostage to nepotism and corruption of the Zardari – Gilani combi_____.
Gilani has now only one option (and that may be the route Aitzaz Ahsan will certainly advise) – tender an apology to the court and at the same time write the letter to Swiss authorities to reopen money-laundering cases against Zardari. But how can Gilani agree to this when Zardari has himself publicly said will not happen? In Parliament Gilani continued to play to the gallery and dance on a fail-safe line, “neither army nor judiciary can derail system.” His erratic behaviour will certainly derail him, sooner rather than later!
PPP leaders in the media never mention to whom US$ 60 million that was in the Swiss accounts belong to. Frankly TV anchors, some of them well exposed for what they are avoid asking this question. Who claimed the money after Musharraf’s large heartedness in giving the green signal to the investigating Swiss Court that Pakistan was no longer interested in claiming US $60 million in public money. As for Presidential immunity, while my good friend Aitzaz Ahsan was brilliantly arguing negating President Musharraf’s immunity claims under Article 248 of the Constitution, he very correctly told the Supreme Court that if Hazrat Umar (RA) could be questioned about his Abaya (long shirt) why could not President Musharraf be held accountable, to quote “According to Article 248, the President and Governor could not be made party in criminal cases, they could not be arrested; but if any of their acts are contrary to the law, they have no protection under Article 248 of the Constitution. They enjoy no immunity in this case” Can my good friend Aitzaz kindly remember Hazrat Umar (RA) as passing today? Hazrat Umar notwithstanding, whatever Aitzaz may now argue before the SC, Gilani has lost the last bestiges of his moral authority to remain the PM. To start resolving the problems in the political arena Gilani has to go. The prolonging of this state of limbo will be detrimental to the very existence of the country.
Whatever our deep reservations about the “Doctrine of Necessity,” it has increasingly looking necessary unless the SC protects the country from looters, the lot of who rule today in the name of democracy from stripping it bare.
After all what use is a Constitution without a country?
Courtesy: The News
