And yet another crisis ! another article of interest.

The Last Chance ..... By Shamshad Ahmad..............In politics, as in every other aspect of life, what people “know” and “understand” largely depends on what they see, hear, and feel and how they think and act. In looking at the unfolding events in our country, and at the acts of our rulers, we see what is not, and see not what is, because all of us accepted to be prisoners of our system find it convenient only to interpret what is easiest to see because we just suppose we have no other alternative.Alas! We are like motionless wooden marionettes singing opera with flapping mouths, which somehow fits with the bizarre dark humour of the medieval ages. Our wooden faces do express the most dramatic of human emotions, lust, jealousy, fear, anger, greed and despair but with a weirdly hilarious quality. For fifty years plus we have been engaged in a puppetry drama in which actors made of flesh merged with actors made of wood producing an endless comedy.But in essence, the actors made of flesh with their feudal and elitist background and military credentials and the actors made of wood with no voice of their own could only present a continuing “tragedy of errors” which has become the fate of Pakistan. A country that came into being in the name of Islam and democracy, and which is still struggling for the essence of both, is currently experiencing yet another squalid drama of its crises-ridden history. The new crisis was precipitated by a reference made last Friday by the President of Pakistan under Article 209 of the Constitution against the country’s chief justice on charges of alleged “misconduct” and “misuse of authority.” This move was no doubt “constitutional” and the president was in his “constitutional” right to have exercised it although questions are being raised on the “constitution” of the supreme judicial council as well as propriety of some of the actions taken by the president including his “meeting” in “uniform” at his “camp office” with the head of Pakistan’s judiciary, one of the three constitutional organs of the state.Apparently, no one, not even his imported prime minister, advised the president that at least for those four or five hours that he was with the chief justice, he could, at least as a gesture of respect for the institution of judiciary, take off his uniform. He would surely not have ceased to hold the office of the president for those few hours. The meeting also could have taken place in camera, not on camera, preferably over a cup of tea in the “civilian” presidency in Islamabad.This would have saved the president many questions on the intent of his “constitutional action” against the chief justice. Also, he would have perhaps also at least appeared to be exercising his constitutional “prerogative” more effectively in greater solemnity and with a transparent dignity owed to the head of the country’s judiciary, an organ which institutionally had always stood behind the very “doctrine of necessity” that keeps him in power today in his uniform.True, the president has no shortage of advisors. But it seems some one “big” from his key advisors was not around. The only one who we discovered was not in Islamabad on that fateful day was our most revered Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, the head of the political wing of Musharraf’s ruling “consortium” who had suddenly gone to New York and reportedly there made a “sensational” revelation claiming “he did not have the right to express his views in the matter” because, according to him, “it is an internal matter between the army and the judiciary.”Plato must be turning in his grave. His “philosopher king” has finally surfaced in the twenty-first century version of his ‘utopia” known as the “no-banana republic” of Pakistan. What should the nation make out of Chaudhry Sahib’s statement except preserving it for posterity in the national archives of “golden words” of wisdom and propriety? So, according to him, “it was an internal matter between the army and the judiciary.” There was also a similar piece of deliberate wisdom by another Q league political wizard, the chief minister of Sindh who, overjoyed with the president’s action, claimed that he also had some “displeasure” with the Chief Justice “in certain” matters over which he had sent a complaint to the federal government. As if it was not enough, some of the federal ministers have been busy spreading confusion and complicating the case by making conflicting claims and statements on the chief justice’s treatment. In one case, a federal minister crossed all limits of propriety in an electronic media live event most inappropriate language unbecoming of “the dignity” of his office. No one, however, has yet answered the questions on the treatment meted out to the chief justice over the first two days of his “non-functional” status during which by all independent accounts, he was under “detention” and as he himself has reportedly stated that he was kept “incommunicado” from the outside world and deprived of “normal life” to which an “ordinary” citizen of Pakistan is entitled by his constitutional right.Meanwhile, the crisis has taken its worst toll in terms of turmoil in the country and serious damage to the institution of our judiciary. Pakistan is today a laughing stock of the world. Unfortunately, we are never without a crisis. We, as an independent nation have had more than our share of crises and challenges that perhaps no other country in the world has ever experienced.What ails Pakistan today is not something new. We have seen this before. Only the faces have changed. It has been a constant struggle between power and polity since the very beginning of our independence. Might considered wrong everywhere has always managed itself to be considered “right” in Pakistan. In this process, we have lost half the country and also our “raison d’etat.”We have been deprived of our democratic ethos. Constitutions have been violated in letter and spirit with impunity. Institutional paralysis has kept the whole nation disenfranchised. It is unsure of what its own original rationale was and what it stands for today. Machiavellian “doctrine of necessity,” has been repeatedly “sanctified” to become our political creed. The tragedy of our nation is that democracy was never allowed to flourish in our country. Military intervention in state’s political system in the 1950s dealt severe blow to the democratic process in the country. Since then, Pakistan has virtually remained under siege of its own armed forces and continues to suffer the consequences in terms of political chaos, institutional paralysis and economic uncertainty.What is most embarrassing for the country and the people is the abuse of Quaid’s name by today’s military-sponsored feudal-based ruling combine of all sorts which claims to be a political party headed by a man in uniform. Had he been alive, the Quaid would have never permitted the “military take-over” of his own political party, the Pakistan Muslim League. The Quaid’s soul must already be restive over the contempt shown by the armed forces towards his “edict” asking them not to “meddle” in the country’s politics.Reverting to the current crisis, the matter is now sub judice before the highest legal and constitutional forum of the country. We can only take note of the shoddy backdrop against which this action was taken and the chief justice was made “non-functional”. A highly “controversial” open letter circulated by a Lahore advocate who now says he “wrote” it only because of his “hurt ego,” is said to be the source of this crisis which the outside world sees as “politically-motivated” and “motivatedly timed.”Irrespective of the “constitutionality” questions on the composition of the supreme judicial council, what now matters in this case for an ordinary citizen of the country is not the fate of one individual but the impact of this case on the future of Pakistan’s judiciary as an independent organ of the state and on the “patterns of governance” in Pakistan which are replete with systemic “misuse” of authority and actions “prejudicial” to the dignity of constitutional public offices.One hopes the conduct and practices of our public dignitaries holding constitutional offices including the prime minister and the president will also be above board to ensure propriety and transparency. There are many common instances of “misuse of authority” at that high level and actions prejudicial to the dignity of their high offices. These include use of official planes and transport as well as the whole security and protocol machinery for their private visits to attend private wedding ceremonies, spring festivals, cricket matches, golf championships and “political” party meetings. The excessive protocol and security for VIP office-holders and their indiscriminate use of special aircraft for private purposes is also blatant “misuse of authority.”But in a system, where everyone who is someone in the government, including the prime minister or chief minister can use a special plane and if an IG of a province can have a long motorcade, and if a corps commander can use a BMW, why can’t the chief justice of the apex court claim and enjoy this privilege? Better rationalise the whole system rather than making the selected “misuse” cases for political or personal vendetta.The “power and the privilege” are thriving on patronage, graft, bribery, exertion, influence-peddling, nepotism, fraud and embezzlement. Politicians are also flourishing on campaign contributions, kickbacks, defaulting bank-loans and soft money. “Misuse of authority” in fact is the most common form of corruption in Pakistan, which even NAB despite all its professedly good intentions and resources has failed to purge from the roots of our system. Amazing things happen in Pakistan. Federal secretaries and provincial chief secretaries have been rewarded for their “services” with the same facilities and benefits including residential plots at state expense as admissible to army’s two and three-star generals. This is a glaring example of corruption by privilege. Will somebody now take a suo moto notice of this worst case of abuse of power in our country? The buck must stop somewhere. Meanwhile, the difficulties and sufferings of the poor and the underprivileged remain unattended. They are burdened with liabilities that normally belong to the state. Parents pay teachers illegal fees to have their children educated, patients pay extra to get proper health care, citizens give public officials “gifts” or money to speed up procedures, and drivers bribe police officers to avoid a fine. What many see as simply a way to get things done is, simply and in fact, nothing but a crime. Those of us who care for Pakistan’s “pride and sovereignty” will also agree that there could be nothing more repugnant to the dignity of our “high constitutional offices” than accepting an aircraft “donated” by a foreign government for our VVIP travels abroad. The offices of Pakistan’s president and prime minister epitomise its sovereignty and independence, and are the symbols of our national pride and dignity.Let this “donated” plane be used by PIA for carrying handicapped or under-privileged Hajj pilgrims instead of being inducted in PAF’s VVIP fleet. Pakistan’s state sovereignty and independence is not to be bartered for state gifts from other countries. If our planes are not flight-worthy, why not abandon the Marco Polo culture at state expense, which our leaders from all periods and vantages have adopted as a prerogative of their office. Our problems are domestic, not external, and their solution also lies in Pakistan, in Baluchistan, in Waziristan, and in other underprivileged areas of the country, not in Washington or New York or in London, Brussels or Davos.And finally, let us hope we will ride through the current crisis with confidence and dignity, and restore the institutional integrity in our country through strict adherence with the Constitution. Our options are limited today. We cannot afford any more tragedies and national debacles. These are exceptional times warranting exceptional responses to our problems. We must avoid reaching points of no return. We love our armed forces. They have given countless sacrifices for this country. In order to regain their place in the hearts and minds of our people, they must now take stock of the gravity of the current crisis and return to their constitutional and professional role devoting their undivided attention and energy to defending Pakistan’s independence, security and territorial integrity. Leave the politics and civil governance to the elected representatives of the people. There is no alternative for Pakistan to return to a genuine democracy rooted in the will of the people, constitutional supremacy and institutional integrity, and a culture of political consistency and civilianised body politic. This is now the only and perhaps the last sine qua non for Pakistan’s survival as an independent, strong and stable country as envisioned by our founding fathers. This is the last chance. ..... (as published in the Daily Nation, Lahore, Pakistan, on 15th March/2007)