AT long last, much delayed elections to the Senate against eleven seats of KP (and one seat from Punjab) were held, giving a comfortable majority to the ruling coalition in the Upper House of Parliament.
Under the seat sharing arrangement, six seats went to PTI and five to the opposition parties, including two each to the PPP and the JUI-F and one to the PML-N. The PML(N) also bagged the lone seat from Punjab. According to official results, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has emerged as the largest party in the Upper House with 26 seats, followed by PML(N) 20 seats, JUI(F) seven, Independent candidates six, the Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) four and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Awami National Party (ANP) three seats each. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), meanwhile, retains 16 Senate seats and is backed by six independent senators, bringing its total strength to 22.
It is unfortunate that the Upper House remained incomplete for almost two years because of political wrangling and constitutional hiccups triggered by the issue of reserved seats. The way for elections was paved by the verdict of the Supreme Court on the matter and directions of the Peshawar High Court to the Governor KP to administer oath of office to the newly elected members of the Provincial Assembly in the backdrop of dilly-dallying tactics adopted by the ruling PTI. Though the result of the Senate elections against vacant seats from KP was in line with the seat sharing formula between the ruling and the opposition parties, regrettably both sides had to rely on ‘vote swapping’ to keep a check on their members to ensure they vote as per party lines. This highlights the lack of confidence in the candidates despite the fact that those securing party nominations are generally considered to be favoured ones and influential in the party ranks. Anyhow, after completion of the strength of the Senate, the ruling coalition is now in a position to steer the legislative business smoothly in the Upper House. The composition of the Senate remained a headache for successive governments for many years as legislation cleared by the Lower House was often obstructed by the Upper House forcing the government to get such bills passed in joint sessions of the two houses. In fact, now as well, no party enjoys a clear majority and smooth legislation will require continuation of the coalition arrangement. We hope that newly elected members will work hard to add to the prestige of Parliament, which remains dented for various reasons.
