AS Information Minister Attaullah Tarar has said there are no major roadblocks and impediments with respect to the 27th Constitutional Amendment, consensus so far eludes among parliamentary parties to make the draft acceptable.
On the basis of what happened on Thursday, one can say that no political party except the PML(N) was in favour of all the amendments included in the proposed package despite hectic consultations and a flurry of meetings Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held with allied parties to take them on board on the highly sensitive issue.
Explaining rationale behind the proposed amendments, the Information Minister said these are aimed at strengthening Government, defence and relations between the federation and the federating units. However, there is a difference of interpretation of these cherished objectives with the main opposition party, the PTI, terming the exercise as an attempt to weaken the Government, the parliamentary system and undermine the relationship between the Centre and the provinces. Earlier, an impression was created that the two major coalition partners – the PML(N) and the PPP – have reached a broad consensus on amendments and that irritants could be sorted out through give and take but the deliberations of the meeting of the PPP’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) indicate there was no consensus except on one clause i.e. Article 243 of the Constitution. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari told reporters late Thursday night that there would be no compromise on provincial autonomy or the provincial share in the National Finance Commission (NFC). He emphatically stated that the CEC members had unanimously and forcefully rejected any idea of rolling back or diluting the provincial autonomy as guaranteed under the 18th Amendment. The stand adopted by the party is understandable as the PPP takes credit for devolution of powers as envisaged in the 18th Amendment. Similarly, Bilawal also underlined that the party would not accept any move to alter the equal representation of all provinces in the proposed constitutional courts. While acknowledging that the Charter of Democracy (CoD) contains a clause supporting the creation of such courts, Bilawal noted that many other demands made in the Charter remain unfulfilled. While there is room for negotiations with the PPP and extreme positions might be reviewed in a spirit of give and take but the stance of the PTI is unbending.
According to its Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan the proposed amendment is “against the spirit of this House and the Constitution”, asserting that the country cannot have further divisions and urged that no amendments be presented that put more pressure on the courts. While the Government maintains the Constitution is a living document and can be updated in line with the evolving needs of the country, the opposition believes matters already settled should not be touched. Concerns of the PPP and other parties with respect to the 18th Amendment and NFC Award notwithstanding, it is a fact that some aspects of the Amendment became a source of friction immediately after its passage in view of the ground realities, therefore, it is for the parliament to find a way out. There are genuine concerns that the federation is not left with adequate funds after making increased allocations to the provinces. The provinces receive substantial resources but still they look towards the federation for funding of major projects and are not willing to contribute anything to the country’s largest social welfare programme – Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) – which is almost totally implemented in the provinces. There should be a realization that the country needs strong defence in view of constant threats to its security as highlighted by the recent short war with India but resource constraint is a major impediment in this regard. There is a ray of hope that differences would be amicably sorted out after introduction of the proposed amendments in the parliament as the Information Minister asserted a committee comprising leaders of all parliamentary parties in the two houses will be formed to review them.
