Emphasizing the need for a wider consensus regarding institutions with the help of opposition parties, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has proposed the establishment of a joint parliamentary committee to form consensus on the issues of amendment to the Army Act and on economic policies.

"A wider consensus regarding institutions cannot be achieved without the support of the opposition parties. There is no doubt that the opposition's role should be recognised," said the federal minister while addressing a press conference at the Pakistan Council of Scientific Industrial Research (PCSIR) on Sunday.

Referring to the Supreme Court verdict on the extended appointment of Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chaudhry said that "a good atmosphere" had now been created in the country. He claimed that Prime Minister Imran Khan has always spoken of the strengthening of institutions and of course this has meant asking that institutions respect the authority and balance of one another.

"As a student of politics since 93, my personal opinion is that we should have a joint parliamentary committee which should immediately decide on the two matters - economic challenges and amendment in the Army Act. A consensus on these two matters is of extreme importance for Pakistan currently. And any problem that besets Pakistan cannot be solved solely by a single institution," he added.

He further proposed that working of the committee should be observed by Prime Minister Imran Khan, Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa and Chief Justice of Pakistan Asif Saeed Khan Khosa. "And with the help of the media, a consensus on the two matters should immediately be formed."

"Imran Khan does have the people's best interests at heart," stressed Chaudhry before claiming that he knows the premier "closely" and does not aim to "make political statements". "I know for a fact that his (Imran Khan) heart beats with the people. He wishes to make a new Pakistan. He has no personal agenda; he doesn't want to amass wealth and is not interested in power. He actually wishes to bring change."

Chaudhry, however, expressed that nothing such would take place and they will remain entangled in problems unless they will bring balance in institutions or strike a "fresh deal". "If we wish to leave a stable Pakistan for our future generations, we (political parties) must cast aside our all differences," he asserted.

Talking about the recently held "Student Solidarity March" which had demanded the restoration of student unions, the minister expressed his full support for the movement, saying that the very foundation of Pakistan rests on student unions.

"Pakistan was formed due to student union activities," he said, recalling that the entire freedom movement for Pakistan was run by students when the Muslim Student Federation established in Aligarh University and later on in Islamia College. "But Gen Zia-ul-Haq in his tenure had made many mistakes; one of them was the ban on student unions."

Declaring the student unions backbone of any democracy, Chaudhry cautioned that there must be some safeguards in place. Student unions must not be allowed to be used by mainstream political parties for gang-like violent activities. Neither should we allow the unions to become a blackmailing mafia like in other places, he added.

The minister further said that all the leading institutions in the world have student unions. "We cannot ban them but we cannot have them engaged in hooliganism either."

About the achievements and plans for the federal science ministry, Fawad announced that Pakistan's first space mission would be launched in 2020 for which short-listing for the astronaut would be done by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) in February next year.

He further said that the country's first astronaut with the cooperation of China will be launched into space in 2020, adding that a 600-fold increase had been made for science and technology in this year's budget. "By next June, we will increase it by 1,000 times, he revealed.

"After a very long time, Pakistan was now reentering the international scene for technology and research," he said, adding that a "ministerial committee" had also been constituted during his last visit to China. He said a similar committee with Russia was also expected to be formed shortly, after which the focus will shift to the European Union and the United States. "Unless and until we have international collaboration, we cannot move forward," he concluded.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019