PPP averse to PTI’s extreme stand on Panama Papers

ISLAMABAD: Split between two principal opposition forces – the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) – has become pronounced and public as the latter has loudly disagreed with the extreme strategy of the former on the Panama Papers.

The rupture was exposed when the government is finding it difficult to name a retired judge or a panel of former justices for the judicial commission. One after another ex-judge has refused to sit on the forum for the obvious reason that none of them is willing to take up a ticklish assignment due to deep political wrangling.

Meanwhile, a discussion is also going on in high official circles to appoint retired or serving judges. One set of opinion, favoured by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, stands for former justices while the other recommends that there is no harm in having serving judges.

It is also stated that there should be no objection to even referring the inquiry into the offshore companies to the Supreme Court chief justice to nominate the justices.

Despite having a loose cooperative relationship with the PPP on the Panama Papers to grill the government, PTI Chairman Imran Khan as usual took a solo flight and announced to march on the Raiwind farmhouse of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif if his demand was not met. This irked the PPP. In any case considering its time-tested policy it was not going to join any street agitation. The two parties keep cooperating to some extent on issue-to-issue basis but their collaboration never becomes strong and vibrant due to the deep-rooted acrimony that grips particularly the PPP against the PTI.

In the view of one senior PPP leader, a sit-in is always the last option in a protest. He was opposed to the PTI’s demand of resignation.

Qamar Zaman Kaira has been quoted as having said that the PPP first wants to use the parliament to press its demand, and if need be, will come on streets to protest. He advised the PTI not to exceed constitutional limits and opposed its idea to boycott the PPP-dominated Senate. He said the PPP was not consulted by the PTI in deciding about the mode of protest.

The PPP doesn’t say it publicly but in hindsight recognizes that their chief Asif Ali Zardari doesn’t approve any protest on the Panama Papers. He has not uttered a word on the anti-government campaign on this issue. He is obviously aware of his own offshore doings, which are no secret, and are comprehensively documented.

Although the PPP has been joining the voice of the opposition parties including the PTI, but it had not been as hard-hitting like some of them. Even in his first speech to the National Assembly on this issue, leader of opposition Syed Khursheed Shah was short of words to attack the government.

A number of names of retired judges have been cited, who had been contacted by the government to be part of the commission but they declined. They included Nasirul Mulk, Tassadiq Hussain Jilani and Sair Ali. While living a retired life after serving the judiciary for decades, every one of them doesn’t want to grapple with a tough assignment, knowing that due to the political division and strife, the opposition parties will not accept the findings of the forum and they will attract unnecessary flak.

There is a possibility that the government will consult opposition leader Khursheed Shah on the final names. Any discussion with the PTI is ruled out due to its severe strategy of not accepting anything done by the government.

However, regardless of speculation the government is likely to announce the head and members of the commission anytime so that the body comes in place and starts work on the issue without further delay. A three-member government team headed by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and comprising Law Minister Zahid Hamid and Special Assistant Barrister Zafarullah Khan is mainly contacting and searching for the retired judges for the forum.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali has offered to Imran Khan to name any Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officer of his choice to probe the offshore companies, but instead of proposing some officer of this organization, the PTI chief has suggested retired police officer Shoaib Suddle for the job, after welcoming the minister’s announcement. Imran Khan has thus given his own spin to the minister’s idea. The government will not even give a serious thought to Suddle’s name.

The minister was conscious of the reasons behind the delay in the formation of the judicial commission and said the two former judges refused to accept the assignment after criticism from the opposition. No ex-justice wants to be involved in this task otherwise the commission could have been formed instantly.