EDITORIAL: Since it decided to support the PML-N from the ‘outside’ for forming the government, post the controversial February 8 general elections, and in return occupied the constitutional offices of president, senate chairman and provincial governors, the PPP has been discovering the disadvantages of being in a marriage of political convenience. For quite some time, it has been complaining about unmet promises related to governance in Punjab. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif held meetings to sort out differences over these issues. They agreed to have their respective parties committees sit together and devise a mechanism to better manage relations between the PPP and the Punjab government, without much success, though.
During the recent months, more serious differences have emerged between the two alliance partners. The PPP has been rightly upset over the federal government’s plan to construct six canals in Punjab that would divert water from River Sindh at the cost of Sindh’s water rights. Taking issue with the plan, Bilawal advised the Centre not to initiate the project which, he said, would become controversial like the Kalabagh Dam, and warned that “forcing opinion on others will result in political instability which will have negative impact on the economy.” The PM responded to his concerns by assigning Deputy PM Ishaq Dar with the task of addressing the PPP’s reservations. So far, he has been unable to generate a consensus on this inflammable issue. Now the federal government has given another unpleasant surprise to the PPP, announcing the establishment of ‘Pakistan Maritime Seaport Authority’ which has drawn a strong reaction from the latter. Its spokesperson Shazia Marri issued a statement grumbling that her party was kept in the dark. Fairness demands that all such matters, especially the canals project, should be discussed and decided inside the Council of Common Interests (CCI). As Marri pointed out, federal government is constitutionally bound to convene a meeting of the CCI within three months, but has not done that for the last eleven months. This reflects badly on the PML-N leadership. But the PPP spokesperson did not do any better as she went on to raise the rhetorical question if it was “wise to sabotage the Constitution on important national issues, without taking allies and provinces into confidence.” She may not have really meant it, but the assertion suggests that according to her lights the supreme law of the land is not inviolable. In fact, there have been quite a few instances in the last three, four years that show our present lot of politicians think nothing of violating the Constitution whenever it suits their purposes.
In a sign the PPP’s growing frustration with its partner is becoming unbearable, Marri reminded the PML-N that it depends on her party’s support, and that “the day we withdraw that support, the Federal government will collapse”, adding “perhaps the PML-N does not realise it.” Surely, it knows that, but it also knows that it need not worry about the PPP walking out of the alliance. It won’t fall apart as long as it has the backing of the powers that be which made the alliance possible. If truth be told, the present setup is not going to go anywhere unless and until those behind it change their mind.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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