Head of PPP Media Cell The Senate is also likely to pass the constitutional amendment 2017 seeking delimitations of the constituencies on the basis of the provisional census 2017. Hopefully, it will give the cause of sigh of relief to the people as the uncertainty of holding of forthcoming elections on time may dissipate for sure. Nothing is more fatal for democracy than the disruption in the democratic process inflicted by the biting uncertainty looming about the holding of elections. Pitiably, the anti-democratic forces and their apologists were on overdrive in circulating the rumors of the indispensability of postponement of elections necessitated by the controversial census 2017. They were perhaps doing the bidding of those who are on the other side of the equation. But the huddling together of the lawmakers have disappointed the naysayers to a great degree. PPP leadership being aware of these egregious tactics had therefore suggested the way forward to the government of holding the meeting of Council of Common Interests (CII) to get over the conundrum paving the way for holding elections on time. The proponents of holding of elections after or before the completion of the term of the Parliament have to succumb to the overwhelming majority that was in favor of holding elections on time. They squarely put the cold water on the hopes of those who were consistently demanding elections sooner than later while riding the wishes horses. It may be noted that boycott or postponement of elections resonate with the strategy of the forces those do not want the people’s decisive, effective and meaningful participation in the State/ Governmental affairs. The political parties those believe in people’s empowerment obviously opposed such drive for the sake of the people’s rights aimed at providing them the opportunity to speak out loudly and clearly through their vote. These are the accepted norms to assert their constitutional rights in substantive terms denied by the successive dictators. The first dictator General Ayub Khan hoodwinked the people by inculcating “Guided Democracy” and General Zia-ul-Haq under the garb of “religious democracy and General Musharraf branded it with “Enlightened Moderation”. All proved sham because they were imposed on the people by them against their will for insidious purpose -- to perpetuate their illegitimate and unconstitutional rule. They failed because no system could deliver without the participation of the people. Their models left behind the heart-breaking legacies those had been choking the nation in various forms and manifestations. Their legacies may continue to hound and hunt the nation to deny it promising future during the unforeseeable future. They were the adversaries of the first order of this nation who shamefully defied the advice of the Founder of the Nation given to the officers in Quetta in an oath taking ceremony held in Staff College, 1948. Pakistan has compelling ideological reasons to lead political life under the democratic dispensation because Pakistan movement is fundamentally a democratic movement. The indispensability of this is further reinforced as digressions by dictators had inflicted irreparable losses to the nation it has not yet recovered. The resultant humiliations and indignities attributed to the tyrant rulers in the form of dismemberment of the country, extremism and terrorism and the delirious consequences of self-defeated doctrine of strategic importance had taken toll on the nation in multifarious ways. The despotic model had failed in the country. It was being perceived as the worst thing that must not happen to this country. This model had also become irrelevant narrative throughout the world because it was an embodiment of pursuit of parochial political power by those who had insatiable desire for this giving damn to the legitimacy of their misadventures. The review of civilian rules in Pakistan certainly outweighs the tyrannical rules with big margin so far as the promotion of the vital national interest is concerned. The history of country bears it out quite frankly in this count without the apprehension of contradiction. Pakistan was dismembered when General Yahya Khan was the ruler of the country. It was precipitated by the abrogation of 1956 constitution by General Ayub Khan in 1958 eroding the basis of national unity. All wars between Pakistan and India were the legacies of the military rulers with controversial outcomes. All territorial losses those bled the hearts of the people were bequeathed by the despots. On the other hand, no country’s territory was lost to the enemy country during the entire civilian rule. The civilian leadership made the defense of the country impregnable as Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto made Pakistan a nuclear power and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto equipped it with the state of the art missile technology while Nawaz Sharif conducted six nuclear tests in 1998 despite the naked opposition and threat of the US. Some politicians and scientists maintained that the state institutions were not in favor of conducting nuclear tests in the face of the opposition of the USA. Thank God, the country was under democratic dispensation at that time. If the military dictator had been facing the similar situation he would have certainly not dared to demonstrate such courage. For, their primacy of longevity of the rule certainly had prevented them that heavily depended on the goodwill of the USA. General Musharraf gave in to one telephone call made by Richard Armatage. The state institutions need to take a deep breath and ponder if Pakistan had not been a nuclear power where would they be standing today. The nuclear blackmail of the arch enemy would have forced the military leadership in a permanent mode of appeasement and the independence of the country reduced to the level of servitude. They may recall the unabated threatening tone of the then Indian leadership suggesting Pakistan forget Indian Held Kashmir and rather return AJK to them which was occupied by Pakistan illegally. But after the nuclear tests in 1998, the tone of the same Indian leadership mellowed down dramatically pleading the importance of the resolution of the issues through negotiations. Why? Because, Pakistan was a nuclear power. The establishments’ status and pride is due to the elected politicians whereas their processors, heart-wrenchingly, did quite the opposite. Powers that be should be deeply beholden to politicians for the robes they are wearing. PPP’s one of the fundamental principles of politics is ‘people are the source of power’. The party is required to strenuously strive for the promotion and strengthening of the democratic order in the country. Its political history is rife with such impeccable credentials. It always stood by its ideology and will continue to do so without an iota of second thought. It is for this reason that PPP leadership wants election on time. It knows very well the serious implications of the confusion pertaining to the holding of elections. To prove the point, it may be recalled that the Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari convinced the other parties to contest elections after the assassination of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto because the postponement or boycott of elections would have strengthened the authoritarian and extremist forces at the expense of democracy. If the leadership had been overtaken by the tragedy and decided to boycott the elections the dawn of democracy might have become a distant cry for many years to come. Today’s democracy is due to the far-sightedness of the leadership that kept the nation’s interest in the foremost and the countervail forces’ at bay. The slow and steady consolidation of democracy in Pakistan largely owes to such sagacious decisions during the testing times. The democratic momentum generated through the ‘politics of reconciliation’ from 2008-2013 by the PPP not only enabled it to complete the constitutional term of the government but also transferred power in peaceful manners to the next government according to the constitution, the first time in the history of the country. The anti-democratic forces and their apologists were very much perturbed over this inspiring political development and could not digest democracy being on track on durable basis. So, they planned to undo the democratic gains. They staged a melodrama of sit-in politic, widely believed with the covert support, to topple the elected government and get in the saddle through hook or cook. The PPP living up to its repute and commitment to ensure the continuity of the political system stood against their juggernaut like the impregnable wall and succeeded in rescuing democracy that was teetering on the edges. The PPP leadership played leading role without the consideration of as who was the beneficiary. It was indeed akin to paying the highest tributes to the legacies of the great Bhuttos who had nurtured democracy with their blood. Chairman Bilawal Bhutto in his recent statement on the ‘naked political manipulation’ in Karachi made it abundantly clear that the PPP would never compromise on democracy and the constitutional rule. The movers and shakers of ‘farce’ may understand that the power no more flows from the barrel of gun. The mindset seems in the same rut sadly defying the ground realities. The explanation given was least convincing because the ‘political engineering’ was even more visible than an open secret. The brute political meddling started by dictator General Ziaul Haq to undercut the influence of the PPP in the province of Sindh is grotesquely continuing. Its continuation is deplorable because the interference may create more problems. It is therefore obligatory on all the state institutions to operate within the ambit of the constitution in which lies their collective redemption. Transgression may invite doom. Make no mistake. muhammadshaheedi@yahoo.com
