US hopes for smooth transition through parliament

WASHINGTON: The United States (US) on Friday declared the ouster of prime minister Nawaz Sharif through a Supreme Court verdict as internal matter of Pakistan but hoped for a smooth transition of power through parliament.

While responding to The News about the US reaction over the Pakistani political development, a State Department spokesperson issued a brief statement.

“This is an internal matter. We look forward to a smooth transition as Pakistan’s parliament selects the next prime minister,” the spokesperson said. The US media covered the issue as breaking news and political commentators here have shown mixed reaction to the ouster of Nawaz Sharif.

“The disqualification of Nawaz Sharif may be a blow to the democratic process, but it's a victory for democratic principles,” said Michael Kugelman, a Pakistan expert at the US think tank Wilson Centre on twitter.

He said there's less reason to worry about transfer of power issues now than there was years ago as democratisation has progressed.

The US media highlighted that no civilian prime minister in Pakistan has ever completed a full term in office. “Friday's ruling marked the first time in the country's history that a leader was disqualified from office following a judicial process,” CNN reported.

Some experts hailed the development as victory for Pakistani system. “The court's decision is a victory for the rule of law,” CNBC quoted Timothy Ash, emerging markets senior sovereign strategist at BlueBay Asset Management, as saying.

"Politicians have been brought to account in Pakistan -- can the same be said for many emerging markets, e.g. Ukraine and South Africa. On the latter we talk a lot about the strength of South African institutions, but have any major politicians been brought to account for stuff that is not dissimilar, even worse, than this?" he said.

Ash said the ruling is a credit to Pakistan, even though it raises questions over the country's political stability. “What draining the swamp actually looks like: courts disqualify national leader — exposed as corrupt by journalists — from office for life,” tweeted Edward Snowden, the whistleblower behind the National Security Agency (NSA) leaks.

He said the accountability must be extended to other institutions of Pakistan. “It's not enough (the corrupt generals need similar accountability), but it's an important precedent.” INP adds: China termed Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification from the public office as Pakistan’s internal matter and said it does not affect their socio-economic cooperative partnership, even in the context of Belt and Road’s initiative.

When asked to comment on the ruling of Supreme Court relating to Nawaz Sharif’s removal from the office of the prime minister, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said they had noted relevant reports.

This, he said “is the internal affair of Pakistan. As a friendly neighbour, China hopes that all parties and sections in Pakistan can prioritise state and national interests, properly deal with their domestic affairs, maintain unity and stability, and keep focusing on the economic and social development.”

“The all-weather friendship between China and Pakistan has withstood the test of times. We believe that the China-Pakistan strategic cooperative partnership will not be affected by the change of the situation inside Pakistan,” he said. 

“China stands ready to work with Pakistan to continue jointly building the Belt and Road and build a community of shared future, which serves the fundamental interests of the two countries and peoples and promotes peace and development of the region and beyond,” the spokesperson added.