Law Minister Farooque H Naek will hand over a draft of the 62-point constitutional package, approved by PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari to PML (N) Chief Nawaz Sharif here today (Sunday) for perusal of the key coalition partner.
Sources told Business Recorder that Nawaz has called a meeting of the PML (N) Parliamentary Party and Central Executive Committee in Islamabad on Monday to discuss the proposed constitutional package which seeks clipping of the President's vast powers and restoration of the deposed judges.
Sources said the constitutional package is likely to be presented in the National Assembly session beginning tomorrow (Monday) in the form of the 18th Constitution Amendment Bill 2008. The constitutional amendment can be initiated either in the National Assembly or the Senate but it has to be passed with a two-thirds majority separately by both the houses or in a joint session of the Parliament.
Sources said the government has already sent the proposed package to its other allies MQM, ANP and JUI (F) for their consideration and approval. ANP and JUI (F) have already indicated that they would support the amendments relating to the clipping of the President's powers.
PML (N) has demanded that a resolution to reinstate the Judges whom President Musharraf sacked on 3rd November 2007 through an extra-constitutional act be also moved in the forthcoming session of the Assembly. It has been insisting there should be no linkage between a resolution for restoration of the judges and a constitutional package.
However PPP says that the deposed judges could be reinstated only through a constitutional amendment which had been incorporated in the proposed package.
Naek has already made clear that the 18th constitution amendment would have some major points to curtail powers of the president. Three of the salient features of this bill, regarding presidency are:
-- Article 58-2(B), which gives the president powers to dismiss an elected government and dissolve the national assembly, will be abolished.
-- The president's authority to appoint provincial governors and the services chiefs will be transferred to the prime minister. -There will be a bar on the person running for the office of president for more than two terms.
These powers were with the Prime Minister before General Musharraf took over the country in a coup in October 1999 and gave these vast powers to the President through the 17th amendment 2003. Sources said the package would help create a balance between the offices of the president and prime minister, by taking away existing presidential powers to appoint chiefs of army, Navy and Air Force as well as the authority to dissolve the parliament.
The package also proposes provision in the constitution to prosecute for treason any judges who, in future, validate a military take-over or suspension of the constitution. Under the Charter of Democracy signed by Pakistan Peoples Party and Pakistan Muslim League the two parties are committed to restore the parliamentary democratic character of the 1973 Constitution.