NA speaker says no threat to democracy

LONDON: National Assembly Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza has said that there were no threats to the parliamentary system in Pakistan and that the rumours swirling around President Asif Zardari’s resignation were counter-productive.
Delivering a keynote address on ‘The Challenges to Parliamentary Democracy in Pakistan’ at a seminar organised by Toha Qureshi at the Forum for International Relations Development (FIRD) here, she said the people of Pakistan would not accept anything that did not come through the constitutional means.
Mirza said conspiracies were always there, as dates were given for the end of the government but the political parties and the people are aware that a change has to come through “constitutional means and nothing else would be acceptable.”
“I don’t see any threat to democracy in Pakistan. All the political parties feel responsible and they want this government to complete its tenure,” she said, when asked by The News if the current system faced any dangers from any side. “We should not thrive on conspiracies,” she said.
“There are serious challenges facing Pakistan at the moment and what is required of us is to unite and do the politics of consensus. The answer to bad democracy is more democracy.” About President Zardari, she said her good wishes were with him and hoped that he would return to Pakistan soon, once his tests are complete, as stated by Presidential Spokesperson Farhatullah Babar.
Mirza told the seminar that it was unfortunate that no democratically elected government in the past was allowed to complete its term in office, adding that it had very negative affects on the Pakistan politics.
She said the long spells of despots defaced the system and many of the problems faced by the country today were as a result of those past mistakes. Various state institutions trespassed each other’s boundaries.
“Institutions were used and abused by dictators in their lust for power,” she said, stressing that continuity of democratic process was linked to the fact that all institutions work within their limits and all stakeholders must take responsibility for their actions.
She praised President Zardari for implementing the 18th and 19th amendments by surrendering his powers to parliament. “This was critical to reinvigorating parliament. This is one single achievement by all political parties that needs acknowledgement.”
She criticised former President Pervez Musharraf’s policies and the dispensation he put together during 2002-07, which ironically included some faces, who have now allied with her party — the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).
She said she accepted that the Pakistani system faced seething issues but added the neglect spread over decades could not be rectified in weeks. “Deep wounds of misrule need nursing with patience and trust.”
The speaker called for reforms in the Pakistani system, admitting a culture of favouritism and nepotism in the government, while provinces were not yet ready to take the responsibility. She also called for a code of conduct for the media in Pakistan, which should be followed religiously and the trend of sensationalism should end.
At the seminar, French analyst Philip Lingard from INSEAD, Khalid Mahmood MP, Pakistan’s Deputy High Commissioner Nafees Zakaria and Dr Arif Malik also spoke about Pakistan’s current situation and regional issues.
The seminar was Dr Fehmida Mirza’s first public appearance since being out of Pakistan for about two weeks now. She spent the last 10 days with her husband Dr Zulfikar Mirza in Europe. Mirza is leaving for Pakistan at the weekend and it is believed that Dr Zulfiqar Mirza, would also accompany her.