Epic fail

After a confusing day and night, the government’s bid to table the much-awaited constitutional amendments has been “postponed indefinitely”. Sunday’s political circus was completely avoidable; National Assembly and Senate sessions were called on Sunday to table the constitutional amendments but the political drama that started a day earlier and went on till late at night on Sunday finally resulted in zilch, at least for the government. The NA session, initially set to start at 11am, only commenced late into the night and was subsequently deferred until Monday, only to be adjourned indefinitely. The PML-N-led government’s efforts to push through these amendments were thwarted by a lack of the necessary two-thirds majority in Parliament, despite strenuous attempts. The events of Sunday epitomize a colossal failure for the ruling coalition, revealing their inability to manage both political and legislative affairs effectively.

The proposed constitutional amendments were meant to address several key issues, including the establishment of a constitutional court – a longstanding demand enshrined in the Charter of Democracy signed by late PPP leader Benazir Bhutto and PML-N leader Mian Nawaz Sharif. Restoring Article 63A, which had been altered by a controversial Supreme Court verdict, was also part of the package. While some aspects of the amendments are indeed contentious, many would have been less problematic under normal circumstances – if only the government had handled the process with transparency.

The lack of clarity surrounding the proposed amendments, shrouded in secrecy, only fueled public scepticism and criticism. Instead of presenting the draft bill openly, the government chose to conceal it, which only served to heighten suspicions and opposition. Even the federal law minister inadvertently disclosed how he received the draft bill on Sunday evening, adding to the sense of disarray and mismanagement. If the government did not have the required numbers and needed to iron out things with Maulana Fazl, it should not have gone ahead with the move to table the bill. By failing to ensure broad-based support and by turning the process into a dramatic spectacle, the government not only lost the narrative war against the PTI but also paved the way for further criticism. The handling of the proposed amendments has led to unwarranted criticism of Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa and has turned an important legislative process into a controversial spectacle. The government’s failure to engage stakeholders – civil society, bar councils, the judiciary, and parliament – has transformed what should have been a routine legislative update into a contentious and opaque affair. It doesn’t matter what was happening behind the scenes and what guarantees or not were given by Maulana Fazl to the government leaders; the fact is that the government turned it into a circus and its preference for secrecy over transparency has backfired spectacularly. The amendments bill, which could have been a step forward, has instead rightly become a symbol of political mismanagement and incompetence. As the government sips from the poisoned chalice of its own making, it is clear the real issue lies in the way the government went about doing all this.