PPP's pragmatic move

In the fullness of time the PPP core committee's deliberations at the Presidency on Thursday will be remembered for their political astuteness and pragmatism. Displaying clear sensitivity to the exigencies of the emerging political scenario in the country the caucus, jointly chaired by President Zardari and Prime Minister Gilani, seems to have decided to concede space in certain areas, while stand fast in others. Not that the PPP leadership has backed off from its nearly-inflexible principal positions, it appears to be re-marshalling its forces to give its political opponents sufficient fight on the electoral battlefield. Of all the changes in its standard positions the most stunning is the PPP leadership's decision to go for early general elections. 'You want 2012 to be an election, you have it', the PPP has dared its rivals. The PPP leadership has abandoned Prime Minister Gilani's loudly-voiced determination to have the present National Assembly complete its five-year tenure. The core committee hasn't hesitated to do that. Of course, elections are contemplated to take place after the budget, for to insist on the opposite would be naïve and unrealistic. Media reports suggest the core committee also discussed going for Senate elections a few weeks ahead of its scheduled date, but it didn't fix a date as it couldn't, given the fact that the date for this election is fixed by the Constitution and cannot be changed. But where the PPP does succeed is to recover some common ground with the PML (N) as the latter too seems interested in going for the Senate election before the general elections; it too would benefit as its strength in the upper house would also increase making it the second largest majority party. The indication to go for early elections will certainly help bring down political temperature. Not too surprisingly, the press release issued after the core committee's meeting clearly shows that Babar Awan was not invited. Meanwhile, the TV channels have reported that the accused asked by the Supreme Court to reply to its contempt of court notices are prepared to surrender themselves before the judges and seek mercy. But Babar Awan, who won't let a chance slip to spew unwarranted expressions against the higher judiciary, did not open his mouth after he received the second notice on Thursday. This shows that the former law minister has realised its blunder of demonizing the judiciary and decided to fight its cases on constitutional grounds. Except for its stiff stands on two important cases that it will not write a letter to the Swiss courts to reopen the alleged money-laundering issue and will defend its position on the Memogate scandal. Since there can be no comment on the two cases as they are under adjudication in the Supreme Court, it is not possible to predict how their aftermath will play out. The PPP core committee's decision "to take appropriate steps in the Parliament on an urgent basis" to create a new province in southern Punjab is nothing more than a political move; the federal legislatures can only pass resolutions and decision to move to enact in that direction is the right of the provincial assemblies. Then there is the demand for a Bahawalpur Province which is more justified and cannot be possibly ignored. And why did the core committee failed to commit itself for the creation of Hazara province. The answer is that the whole discussion about new provinces is politics, an attempt to create divergence from more serious issues affecting the life of the common man. We hope with pressure on the government a bit lessened in light of its new moves, its focus would now be the people's problems. Democracy is not merely elections; it is supposed to be a day-to-day affair with voters - past, present and future. The bitter truth is that this simulacrum of democracy has failed miserably, to deliver, eroding masses' faith in democratic dispensation. Who said "Take away justice, and what are governments but great confederacies of robbers"? Copyright Business Recorder, 2012