Posts Tagged ‘Benazir Bhutto’

Hitting back: PM laughs off street agitation

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani delivered a scathing riposte to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on Sunday over their back-to-back public rallies in support of the superior judiciary.

Even if Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan join hands, the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party  (PPP) is “popular enough to defeat their alliance”, Gilani told office-bearers of the Lahore Press Club at his residence. The prime minister also accused the two parties of inciting street agitation through their actions and reminded the PML-N chief that his party was violating the Charter of Democracy.

Nawaz had invited the PTI to join his movement to oust Premier Gilani following his conviction by the apex court. But Imran says his party would join hands with the PML-N only if its lawmakers resign en masse from parliament and the provincial legislatures – both unacceptable preconditions for the Sharif brothers.

The two parties are now leading street protests separately.

Premier Gilani said it was he and President Asif Ali Zardari who faced former military ruler Pervez Musharraf with courage while the Sharif brothers “fled the country after signing a deal with the dictator”.

The PPP leadership would do the same, whenever needed, and the Sharif brothers would again escape from the country, he added.

He called upon the Sharif brothers to apologise to the nation for “concealing their agreement with Musharraf and telling lies for ten years”.

The premier laughed off Sunday’s public rally of the PML-N in Taxila, saying that “my son can stage bigger rallies for them”.

Describing the PML-N’s street protests as realpolitik, Gilani challenged them to resign from the assemblies and he would announce snap polls. “If the PML-N leadership has courage, they should ask their lawmakers to resign from the assemblies en bloc and I will announce by-polls the same day,” he said.

The prime minister said that if the opposition wanted to unseat him, they ought to table a no-confidence motion in parliament. He insisted that he could not be forced to relinquish his post. “Nobody can remove me from my office through any undemocratic or unconstitutional method as there is a constitutional procedure for the removal of a prime minister,” he added.

He also reminded Nawaz of the Charter of Democracy he had signed with slain PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto. The two leaders had agreed to uphold the cause of democracy in the country. “The PML-N is a signatory to the Charter of Democracy, so why is it staging a long march (against a democratic government?” he asked.

He vowed not to relent to the opposition pressure and step down voluntarily. He said that only parliament could de-notify him. If the apex court disqualifies me in its detailed judgment, even then the National Assembly speaker will decide my fate, he added.

Referring to the Pakistan Bar Council’s statement, the premier said that all bar councils of the country have endorsed the PPP’s stance on this matter.

(Read: From among our many wounds)

Published in The Express Tribune, May 7^th, 2012.

BB murder, Mumbai attack, other cases adjourned

RAWALPINDI – Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Number 1 postponed the hearing in former premier Benazir Bhutto murder and Mumbai attack cases till May 19, 2012 due to absence of defence lawyers and prosecution.
ATC No 1 Judge Shahid Raffique, who took up case at Adyala Jail, deferred the proceeding in the cases as the defence lawyers and the special public prosecutors did not present before the court …

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Minimum wage increased to Rs 8,000; EOIBI pension to Rs 2,000

Labourers work at a brick kiln near Lahore. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has announced an increase in the minimum wage for labourers. – Photo by Online

ISLAMABAD: The minimum wage of workers in Pakistan has been increased to eight thousand rupees, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani announced on Tuesday.

Additionally, the Employees’ Old-Age Benefit Institution pension has been increased to Rs 2,000 from Rs 1,500.

Gilani, addressing a Labour Day event at the Convention Centre in Islamabad, also also handed over ‘regular’ appointment letters to the employees of Capital Development Authority (CDA), Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) and the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

“Our democratic government is committed to bringing a socio-economic revolution in the country, as was envisioned by Shaheed Benazir Bhutto and Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto,” Gilani told the attendees.

In addition to the thousand-rupee wage increase, the death grant for labourers has also been increased from Rs 150,000 to Rs 500,000 and grant for labourers’ children’s weddings has been raised from Rs 70,000 to Rs 100,000.

Gilani also urged a prompt announcement of the Labour Policy 2012 and implementation of the Industrial Relations Act (IRA-2012).

“PPP is the party of labourers and workers. We have always worked for their rights but some elements did not like our love for the labour community,” the PM said.

Amid pro-PPP sloganeering, Gilani claimed that the PPP government has fulfilled 80 per cent of its promises.

“Restoration of labour rights, IRA-2012, Labour Appellate Tribunals, Labour Policy 2010, reinstatement of over 6,000 sacked government employees, right of appeal to government servants in labour courts are the big achievements of our government,” the PM boasted.

Gilani also announced the construction of 12,000 houses, seven schools, seven industrial homes and four community centres for the labour community.

“Our democratic government made workers shareholders in for the first time in the country’s history and distributed shares worth Rs. 100 billion among half a million workers,” the under-fire PM told the convention.

Steps such as nomination of workers in the Board of Directors of the institutions will empower the working classes.

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Via DAWN.com

Nawaz to PM: quit or face movement

ISLAMABAD, April 30: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz announced on Monday that it would launch a ‘protest movement’ against the government, but gave no plan or a roadmap for its execution.

“Comply with the Supreme Court’s order, quit the prime minister’s office or face protest movement. This is the final verdict of the PML-N and the gist of today’s meeting,” Nawaz Sharif said at a press conference after presiding over a joint meeting of the party’s central working committee and parliamentary group.

The meeting was convened to devise a strategy in the aftermath of last week’s conviction of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani by the Supreme Court on contempt charges for not writing a letter to the Swiss authorities to reopen a money-laundering case against President Asif Ali Zardari.

Accompanied by senior party members, including Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the PML-N chief said his party had decided to ask the Election Commission to clear its position on the issue of the prime minister’s disqualification after his conviction.

He said it was unfortunate that a ‘convicted’ prime minister was adamant to ‘cling to power’.

“If people do not come out (in streets), there will be chaos and anarchy in the country,” Mr Sharif warned. He urged lawyers, traders, students and civil society organisations to join hands to save the nation. “I invite all political parties to come out to save Pakistan,” he said, adding that parties should rise above political and election interests. He said those who did not come out to save the country would be committing treason.

In reply to a question, Mr Sharif showed his readiness to even talk to Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaaf chief Imran Khan, who has been savaging the Sharif brothers in public meetings and in the media.

“We will contact Imran Khan. We will contact Jamaat-i-Islami and will approach the true and real successors of Benazir Bhutto.

We will contact Naheed Khan (former political secretary of Ms Bhutto) and Aftab Sherpao. We are launching a strong protest movement (against the government) inside and outside parliament,” he said, adding that the objective of the movement was to establish rule of law, and not to acquire power.

He said there was a feeling within the party that there was a ‘do-or-die’ situation and the time had come to play the role it had done at the time of the movement for restoration of deposed judges in 2009.

In reply to a question, the PML-N chief did not rule out the option of en mass resignation from the assemblies and said all options were under review. “If the rulers do not spare the life of people, there will be a long march.”

He avoided giving a timeframe or deadline for the long march despite repeated questions by reporters.

Sources in the PML-N told Dawn that the issue of en mass resignation had been discussed at the meeting, which lasted almost four hours.

The party was divided on the issue. Hawkish elements favoured quitting the assemblies to force the government to hold elections. Others said they should not leave the field open for the government.

It was through a show of hands that the party leadership came to the conclusion that they should not immediately resign from the assemblies and use the option at an appropriate time, the sources said. According to them, Marvi Memon, who attended the meeting on special invitation, suggested that the party should form committees in districts and cities to mobilise the masses.

Enver Baig, a new entrant to the party and a former PPP senator, suggested that the PML-N leadership should approach the diplomatic corps in Islamabad to apprise them of the prime minister’s legal status after the apex court’s verdict.

An aggressive Khawaja Saad Rafiq lashed out at President Asif Zardari and said he was an “untrustworthy man who does not understand the language of decency”.

Other prominent speakers at the meeting were Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Sabir Shah, Zafar Ali Shah and Ghous Ali Shah. The PML-N secretary general, Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, told Dawn that the party had prepared a schedule for rallies and public meetings across the country and it would be released to the media in a day or two.

He said the party’s movement was not aimed at removing the prime minister, but forcing the rulers to implement the court’s orders by writing a letter to the Swiss authorities to reopen the case against the President.

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Via DAWN.com

Gilani maintains defiant stance

ISLAMABAD, April 30: There is no let-up in the rising political temperature in the country. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, at centre of a controversy after his conviction for contempt, continued with his defiant mood on Monday.

The prime minister, while speaking at a ceremony in the morning, publicly criticised the Supreme Court judgment and then while addressing the Senate in the evening he hit out at the Pakistan Muslim League-N for demanding his resignation in the aftermath of the conviction.

At the ceremony organised by Radio Pakistan, Mr Gilani for the first time publicly criticised the seven-member Supreme Court bench’s judgment in which he had been found guilty of contempt charges.

“Even though the entire world is aghast over the SC judgment against me, we have accepted it.

“Can a court convict somebody with a criminal offence when there are civil charges against him?”

The prime minister also said in a sarcastic tone that his 30-second punishment deserved to be included in the Guinness Book of World Records.

He said there was no law in the world under which a court could send home an elected representative, thus he would continue to serve as prime minister.

Since the announcement of the court judgment on April 26, legal experts are divided on its impact. Some say it automatically disqualifies Mr Gilani as a member of the National Assembly and he ceases to be the prime minister. But there are others who believe that only the speaker can decide on the matter as the final authority.

From his hard-hitting remarks, it appears the soft-spoken prime minister has decided to take his opponents head-on.

And for the first time, the prime minister bracketed the SC judgment and PML-N’s response to his conviction, saying that from the opposition party’s reaction it appeared as if they knew the judgment in advance.

“The implementation of law by the SC should be even-handed,” said the prime minister while referring to the court’s lack of interest in the Mehrangate scandal in which PML-N leaders are allegedly involved. “Strangely, the SC was quick to announce decision on my cases but showing no urgency on Mehrangate scandal.”

In response to a question, the prime minister outrightly dismissed a perception of a constitutional crisis following his conviction.

“Only the Sharif courts based in Raiwind are getting impassioned and want to send the current set-up packing. Otherwise, there is nothing wrong.”

Mr Gilani also asked the Sharif brothers to explain under which court judgment they had been released from Adiala jail and flown to Jeddah.

In response to the opposition’s demand for his resignation, Mr Gilani said only the speaker of the National Assembly had the power to ask him to leave the charge as prime minister and if asked, he would not think for a second and go back to Multan.

“What is the hurry, let the detailed judgment come. And what about my right of appeal against the decision which the Constitution gives me,” he said in response to a query.

LETTER TO AITZAZ: “At the end of the day, it is the people of Pakistan who judge the performance of their government and this right of the people, expressed through their elected representatives in parliament, cannot be taken away and should not be allowed to be taken away from them,” the prime minister said in a letter addressed to Senator Aitzaz Ahsan along with a Rs100 cheque as fee for what he termed his priceless services as his lawyer.

“In representing me, in fact, Senator Aitzaz Ahsan was upholding and defending the principle of supremacy of the Constitution which was no small matter, especially in the face of an adverse propaganda by some political entities and relentless bias by a section of the media.”

The prime minister referred to Chaudhry Aitzaz’s book ‘Divided by democracy’ in which he wrote that in the political history of Pakistan not once had the judiciary “invalidated the incumbent regime of a military adventurer” and expressed the hope that some day this would prove to be untrue.

CONSPIRACY: Speaking in the Senate after a protest walkout by PML-N members against his appearance in the house after conviction, Mr Gilani accused the opposition party of conspiring to derail democracy and advised it to desist from influencing the court’s decision.

He said the law provided for an appeal against the judgment followed by a procedure. He said he would quit the day he was de-notified by the speaker.

He also claimed that even if he went, the next prime minister would be picked by him.

The prime minister said he was not a beneficiary of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) and his only crime was that he wanted to protect the Constitution. He said he had given respect to former prime minister Nawaz Sharif after his conviction in a hijacking case.

He said Mr Sharif had become the first beneficiary of the NRO when he proceeded to Jeddah from Adiala jail under an agreement. However, he kept misleading the nation by saying that he had not signed any agreement.

Prime Minister Gilani said he had followed the rules and procedures and accepted the advice, which was correct, that a letter for reopening cases against the president could not be written because the head of the state enjoyed complete immunity in and outside the country under the Constitution.

The prime minister said even his successor would not write such a letter if he left.

He said Mr Sharif’s moves were driven by his ‘Imran phobia’. “That is why they want to hold a long march before him.”

Mr Gilani said the bar on becoming prime minister for the third term had been lifted to favour Mr Sharif.

DAR’S DEFENCE: Leader of Opposition in the Senate, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, sharply reacted to the remarks, saying Mr Sharif had not gone to Saudi Arabia through any NRO but Muslim countries had played a role to save the leader who could have been hanged by Gen Pervez Musharraf.

He said the clause about bar on premiership was also applicable to the late Benazir Bhutto.

Senator Dar said the PML-N would accept the decision if the sentence was set aside after an appeal.

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Via DAWN.com

Bin Laden theories flourish in Pakistan

ABBOTABAD: A year after Osama bin Laden’s death, little is known about what the Pakistani authorities knew of his presence, allowing wild theories on what “really” happened to flourish.

Sitting on a rock by his garlic patch in the Bilal Town district of Abbottabad, around 80km north of Islamabad, Zain Mohammad says he wishes people would stop calling him “bin Laden’s neighbour”.

The nickname has stuck since last May, when a US special forces raid killed the 9/11 mastermind just a few metres from his house.

He’s not embarrassed, he says, just concerned for the truth. Like almost everyone else in this part of Abbottabad, a quiet town tucked in the foothills of the Himalayas, he doesn’t believe bin Laden was ever there.

But what about the American raid, the gunfire and explosions, the widows and children found in the house?
“I don’t think bin Laden was here. Only innocent people, with no links with al Qaeda or other militant groups, lived there and were martyred,” he said.

Aurangzeb, the head of a local school, is equally confident.

“Bin Laden was not here. His family maybe, but not him. This is just a drama set up by Americans with the complicity of the Pakistani army, which can do anything for money, they are just beggars!” he said.

It is a popular theory in the area. A local journalist says people are simply unwilling to accept such a notorious character was living in their midst.

“The reality is they are ashamed that bin Laden was hiding there while at the same time groups affiliated with al Qaeda killed thousands of people all over the country with their suicide bombings,” he said.

On the morning of May 2 last year, the same shame, along with fear, was felt at the highest levels of Pakistan’s all-powerful military, a security source said, reiterating the intelligence service’s line that they knew nothing about bin Laden’s presence in Pakistan — a theory that has cut little ice in Washington.

“Military chiefs felt betrayed by the US, who did not tell them before the raid,” the official said.

“There was above all an element of fear among them when they realised that they were unable to control all their units and to know if some of them, linked to militants, helped bin Laden to hide there.”

In a sign of the gravity of the situation, General Shuja Pasha, head of the Inter Services Intelligence agency, made a rare admission in May when he acknowledged failings over bin Laden before parliament.

But he said little more, and the veil once again came down on the bin Laden affair.

For months the army barred all access to the Abbottabad house, before demolishing it suddenly in February, while the Americans refused to release a single photograph of bin Laden.

So the rumour mill began to whir: some believe the Americans brought bin Laden alive from Afghanistan and killed him in Abbottabad to smear Pakistan’s reputation. Others insist the Saudi terror mastermind is still alive.

Mystery also surrounds bin Laden’s three widows and children who lived with him in Abbottabad and were held by the Pakistanis after the Americans left them behind.

They were deported from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia on Friday after almost a year in custody, in which they did not make a single public appearance, creating yet more wild rumours.

Last month a retired Pakistani general claimed one of bin Laden’s wives betrayed him to the Americans in a fit of jealousy over a younger wife.

And a week before the deportation, a police officer guarding the house where the family was being held told AFP that one of the wives had given birth a few days earlier — 11 months after the death of the presumed father.

Will the full story of bin Laden’s time on the run in Pakistan and who knew about it ever emerge? In a country which seems to specialise in political and military mysteries, it looks unlikely.

The assassins of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, killed more than four years ago, have yet to be brought to justice and the death of military ruler General Zia-ul Haq nearly 25 years ago is still shrouded in mystery.

For the intelligence services, crazy theories serve a useful function, the security official explained.

“For the vast majority of the population, often uneducated, the army prefers to let conspiracy theories flourish instead of using transparency that could bring a greater shame, so people don’t entirely lose faith in the intelligence agencies’ ability to protect them from danger,” he said.

Govt to file corruption cases against Sharifs: Malik

The government will file corruption references against the Sharif family with the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Malik said at a news conference on Saturday.

He admitted that this was a ‘tit-for-tat’ strategy.

“We will send corruption references against the Sharif family to NAB next week,” Malik said. Waving some thick files at the cameras, Malik said he had collected this evidence in his personal capacity after he was asked by former prime minister Benazir Bhutto to investigate the Hudabiya Paper Mills case, the Mehran Bank scandal and various other cases related to money laundering. He added that he could provide it to NAB and the apex court “if they take suo motu notice of the Sharif brothers’ corruption.”

What he provided to the audience, however, was a seven-page document which gave a historical background of some corruption cases filed against PML-N leaders. “Each and every booklet speaks of their corruption,” he said.  He added that has proof against Leader of the Opposition in National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan’s ‘wrongdoings,’ but did not provide any evidence. Malik added that this is just the ‘first episode’ and he will make further revelations later.

‘Pack of lies’

PML-N Information Secretary Mushahidullah Khan rejected the allegations levelled by Malik, terming them ‘a pack of lies.’

“We cannot believe a person [Rehman Malik] who has tainted himself and sought the president’s pardon on his conviction,” Khan said. The PML-N is ready to face a trial and the government should go ahead and present this ‘evidence’ in the court, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 29^th, 2012.

Malik alleges Nawaz Sharif involved in money laundering

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Interior Minister Rehman Malik. – File Photo

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Saturday alleged that PML-N Chief and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was involved in money laundering.

Addressing a news conference in Islamabad, he said evidence against Nawaz Sharif would be placed before the Supreme Court and National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for alleged corruption of $32 million.

Rehman Malik said a commission may be formed to investigate alleged involvement of Nawaz Sharif in money laundering.

He appealed to the Supreme Court to call him and he would present all evidence. He further alleged that Nawaz Sharif made an NRO with former President Farooq Ahmed Leghari and as a result, Benazir Bhutto’s elected government was unconstitutionally dismissed in November 1996.

Rehman Malik also alleged that Nawaz Sharif made a second NRO with dictator Pervez Musharraf and went abroad after signing an agreement and violated the Charter of Democracy (COD) he signed with Benazir Bhutto in 2006.

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Via DAWN.com

ATC adjourns BB murder case hearing till May 5

Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) Rawalpindi adjourned the hearing of Benazir Bhutto murder case till May 5 due to absence of prosecutors.
Shahid Rafiq, judge of ATC No.1 of Rawalpindi on Saturday resumed the hearing of the Benazir Bhutto murder case.
The hearing was adjourned without any further proceedings as the special public prosecutor was busy in the Lahore High Court (LHC).
Also, Federal …

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Profile: Yousaf Raza Gilani’s political career

On April 26, 2012, he became the first prime minister to be convicted for contempt by the country’s highest court.

A former cabinet minister and speaker of National Assembly, Gilani joined the Pakistan People’s Party in 1988 under the late prime minister Benazir Bhutto.

But it was only after the PPP won elections for a third time in 2008, following Bhutto’s assassination in late 2007, that Gilani unexpectedly won a race to fill the power vacuum left by Bhutto.

Gilani started his political career with the PML as a member of the central working committee in 1978 during General Ziaul Haq’s tenure.

He was the federal minister for housing from 1985 to 1988 and later went on to become the minister for railways but resigned after developing differences. He then left the Muslim League and joined the PPP the same year.

Gilani defeated PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif from Multan in the 1988 elections and became the health minister in the Bhutto government. He also remained the housing and works minister during this period.

Gilani was in the key position of speaker National Assembly from 1993 to 1996.

His only political defeat came in 1997 at the hands of Sikandar Khan Bosan.

In 2001, he was arrested on charges of misuse of authority and could not participate in the 2002 elections.

He was released from the Adiala Jail on October 7, 2006, after which he authored a book called “Chah-e-Yousaf say Sada” about his time in jail.

He was elected as the prime minister by securing 264 votes against Pervaiz Elahi on March 24, 2008.

Born on June 9, 1952 in Karachi, Gilani is the son of an influential landowning family from Multan. His family has a long heritage as guardians of Islamic shrines and his father was an MNA as well.
(with additional input from AFP)

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27^th, 2012.

Economic consequences: Markets brush off verdict, expect PPP to survive

Economists and market analysts interviewed by The Express Tribune largely brushed off the verdict, saying that while they would be carefully monitoring the political developments over the coming days, they do not expect a major change in either the coming year’s budget deficit, nor the stability of the economy as a whole, nor even the country’s capital markets.

“People will only be worried if the political drama gets really messy,” said Imtiaz Gadar, an economist at KASB Securities, an investment bank.

Gadar believes that the overall outlook for the economy remains unchanged. “It is an election year, so we know that none of the economic reforms we need will actually happen. That expectation remains unchanged. We also expected the government would increase spending [in fiscal year 2013]. That expectation is also the same.”

Some economists actually have a favourable view of the higher government spending. Muzzammil Aslam, a macroeconomic analyst at JS Global Capital, argues that it would effectively act as a stimulus to a sluggish economy. He also brushes off concerns that it might increase inflation.

The expectations for the budget deficit itself for fiscal year 2013 – an election year – while high, are outlandish. “We estimate that the deficit will come to about 5.8% of the total size of the economy,” said Gadar.

“We do not anticipate the budget deficit ballooning beyond 5%,” said the more optimistic Aslam.

As for the day’s events itself, the country’s capital markets had somewhat mixed reactions, though there was no crash of the sort seen after former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto’s assassination. The bond market in Karachi was particularly indifferent, effectively yawning at today’s political drama. “There were no real changes in yields or volumes,” said one trader.

The stock market went through more of a see-saw, with very little trading taking place during the first half-hour after the Karachi Stock Exchange opened at 9:30 am. Then, at 10:07 am, when the verdict was first announced (or rather misinformation about the verdict came to be known), the market panicked. The KSE-100 index plunged 200 points (about 1.5%) over the next 90 minutes, before eventually rallying back into positive territory. Nonetheless, the market closed in negative territory, down 151 points, or about 1.1%.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27^th, 2012.

Into the realm of utter uncertainty

Like a typical either/or dilemma there are two clearly conflicting interpretations of the Supreme Court decision announced Thursday. The diehard opponents of the government firmly believe that after the conviction of Yousaf Raza Gilani, howsoever symbolic it may sound, stands disqualified to continue as the Prime Minister of Pakistan with immediate effect.

Gilani’s legal eagles aver otherwise. Passionately quoting from the concluding lines of the short order of Thursday, they force you to fathom that their client had been convicted under Article 5 of the Contempt of Court Ordinance of 2003. The court had not invoked article 63(g) that disqualifies a sitting member of the National Assembly.

Disregarding the legalistic hair-splitting, Nawaz Sharif did not take long to appear on a private television to pronounce that after the Supreme Court decision of Thursday, Gilani had lost all moral grounds to continue as the Prime Minister. He must resign and help in creating consensus for installation of an interim prime minister who should hold fresh election.

Being a two-time prime minister of this country, Nawaz Sharif should instinctively know that morality hardly counts in power politics and Gilani represents a thick-skinned lot anyway. He will not resign voluntarily. Someone has to force him to do so. So, how to go about it? Let me humbly suggest a possible way out. Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N has more than 90 members sitting in this assembly. They should instantly ask the Speaker National Assembly, via a soundly drafted reference that after Thursday’s decision Gilani had become a ‘stranger’ to their august house. The process to de-seat him must be initiated. Madame Speaker cannot take more than 30 days to forward their reference to the Election Commission. If she doesn’t act the matter would automatically move under EC’s jurisdiction.

Until my writing this column, the PML-N members did not seem too keen to execute the obviously available option for getting Gilani out. They remained busy in a brainstorming session until 6:35. As if after getting tired of waiting, Dr Mirza called the house in order and Farooq Naek took the floor to deliver a boring lecture on the history of Benazir Bhutto’s prosecution in Switzerland, thanks to the diligence of Nawaz Sharif’s accountability czar in 1997.

My very reliable sources claimed that the PML-N would still prefer to make noises on moral grounds only. For the moment, all their energies are viciously focused on a group of 10-plus legislators of the PPP. With the promise of fielding them on the PML-N ticket during the next election, these legislators are being beseeched to come out into the open and demand Gilani to resign. Although continuing to play footsie with the PML-N, the same legislators remain reluctant. They do not want to appear as if ditching their party in the lurch like greedy opportunists.

The PML-N legislators also want that before putting up a full-throated demand for the resignation of Gilani, last-minute efforts should also be made to take the PML-Q on board. Many of Chaudhry’s loyalists are willing to jump ship, but Pervez Elahi remains the trouble. Also required is some sort of patch-up with the MQM that should eventually lead to establishment of some working understanding between the loyalists of Altaf Bhai and Nawaz Sharif. The MQM will not make the first move; Nawaz Sharif has to take the initiative by discarding the bitterness that he had been accumulating against the ‘representative voice of Urban Sindh’ for so many years. No wonder, to find out what to do next, the PML will have a broad-based brainstorming session on April 30, without realizing that even one single day decisively counts in politics when hit by the flux.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27^th, 2012.

Gilani still the PM; not disqualified: Naek tells NA

A view of National Assembly in session. – File Photo

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Law and Justice Farooq H Naek on Thursday told the National Assembly that Yousuf Raza Gilani is still the Prime Minister of Pakistan and will remain so as the Supreme Court has not disqualified him.

“The prime minister has not been disqualified. He is the prime minister and will remain the prime minister,” said Naek concluding his speech in the house in which he gave a historic account of the cases against Benazir Bhutto and President Asif Ali Zardari.

He said the prime minister has never disobeyed the court nor ridiculed it rather appeared before the judiciary as an obedient person, not like an arrogant PM.

“I want to clarify here that the Supreme Court has not disqualified Yousuf Raza Gilani as prime minister or member of the National Assembly,” Naek said, adding court verdict has just stated that it may entail serious consequences.

Earlier, members from opposition benches shouted “go Gilani go” and “no Gilani no” slogans against the prime minister.

Opposition Leader in the National Assembly Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan took charge of the protest and demanded the prime minister to resign from his post. “We will not allow a convicted person to rule the country,” he added.

Members from the treasury benches counter attacked the slogans from lawmaker sitting other side of isle.

The law minister also said as detailed verdict is yet to come and the prime minister would decide whether to file an appeal or not.

“Until the appeal is decided, the whole procedure would be considered as sub-judice,” he observed.

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Via DAWN.com

Five months after Nisar quit, PAC gets new boss

This comes as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) is poised to scrutinise the accounts of the incumbent government led by his party.

The unopposed election of Chan as the PAC chairman marks a departure from the tradition of assigning the job to the opposition in order to maximise accountability of government officials.

A close relative of Minister for Capital Administration and Development Division Nazar Ghondal, Chan was given preference over another PPP lawmaker, Yasmeen Rehman.

The office of PAC chairman had been lying vacant since November last year when Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the opposition leader in the National Assembly, stepped down in protest at the appointment of Akhtar Buland Rana as auditor general. He had also accused the government of disrupting the smooth functioning of the parliamentary watchdog.

The delay in finding Chaudhry Nisar’s replacement resulted in a five-month delay in the scrutiny of the incumbent government’s accounts.

“President Asif Ali Zardari has nominated Nadeem Afzal Chan for the slot,” said PPP stalwart and minister for religious affairs Khursheed Shah.

Previously, the slot was given to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) under an understanding reached between Nawaz Sharif and slain PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto under the Charter of Democracy, he added. Even after Chaudhry Nisar resigned, the government asked him to name his replacement – but he turned down the offer.

Shah applauded Chaudhry Nisar’s role in improving PAC’s performance and advised Chan to emulate his predecessor.

In three and a half years, when Chaudhry Nisar was at the helm, the PAC recovered Rs115 billion from various ministries and government departments. A major chunk, Rs33 billion, was recovered from oil companies.

“It will be unfair if one does not acknowledge the outstanding work done by Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, and Chan can only succeed if he follows the principles set by his predecessor,” said Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira, who is also a member of the PAC.

Chan vowed to uphold the tradition of taking decisions unanimously and working beyond party lines. He assured the PAC would scrutinise the accounts of the incumbent government.

Chan is also the Chairman of the National Assembly Standing Committee of Rules and Procedures. It is not yet clear whether he will resign from this position or keep both.

However, it appears that PAC’s days of smooth sailing are over. PML-N has nominated the most vocal lawmaker Abid Sher Ali to replace Chaudhry Nisar in the PAC.

According to PML-N insiders, the party expects Sher Ali will not allow Chan to settle the incumbent government’s ‘embezzlement’ cases easily.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2012.

Asghar Khan petition: SC resumes hearing

Supreme Court of Pakistan. — Photo by AFP

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court resumed the hearing of Asghar Khan’s petition on Wednesday, DawnNews reported.

A three-judge bench comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, Justice Khilji Arif Hussain and Justice Tariq Parvez was hearing the case.

During the hearing, the chief justice remarked that those who had distributed the funds should also recover them.

The petition was filed in 1996 by Tehrik-i-Istiqlal chief Asghar Khan requesting the apex court to look into allegations that the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had provided money to a large number of politicians before the 1990 elections by dishing out Rs140 million to create the Islami Jamhoori Ittehad and stop Benazir Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) from winning the election.

Earlier during Monday’s proceedings, the Supreme Court was informed again that the inquiry reports by two commissions believed to be insightful and revealing about the 1990s financial scams of the Habib Bank Limited and the now defunct Mehran Bank Limited were ,still missing,.

The commissions were set up to investigate the scams in pursuance of notifications issued on June 17, 1994, and January 11, 1996.

The court on Monday directed Attorney General Irfan Qadir to call a meeting at his office of the interior secretary as well as officials concerned of the interior and law ministries to get a proper response from them in black and white about the whereabouts of the reports. The court was expected to be informed about the outcome of the meeting today.

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Via DAWN.com

I am proud of you, Mr PM: Bakhtawar

LONDON – Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday said she had faith in Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, adding the premier would make slain Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto proud, reported a private TV channel. In a message posted on social media, Bakhtawar tweeted that the PM would not violate Vienna Convention and Constitution of Pakistan.
She said “You will not desecrate the …

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APML welcomes UK decision not to extradite Musharraf

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The APML welcomed the British government’s decision of not extraditing former president Pervez Musharraf from the UK in connection with the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. -File Photo

ISLAMABAD: All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) welcomed the decision of the British government not to extradite APML Chief Pervez Musharraf from the UK, stating that the PPP-led ruling alliance should identify the real culprits behind Benazir Bhutto’s assassination instead of seeking political mileage on her name and fooling the people.

In a press statement released on Tuesday from APML Central Secretariat, APML (Youth Wing) Secretary General Muhammad Amoun Pasha said that the British government has foiled the conspiracy of PPP to extradite former President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf from UK by implicating him in BB murder case as the government of Pakistan does not have any such agreement with the British government.

“The PPP-led ruling elite should identify the real culprits of BBs assassination as the elements who were responsible for Benazir’s security were being bestowed now with ministries and privileges by the ruling party,” Pasha said.

“The incapability of the incumbent government has resulted in crisis, chaos and confrontation across the country. At one side PPP is promising to create a Seraiki province in South Punjab to compensate its four years of sheer negligence and on the other side its fanning confrontation with the judiciary by trying to become political martyrs,” Pasha said.

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Via DAWN.com