Double standard

In 2019, the Imran Khan-led government survived the no-confidence vote against the chairman of the Senate tabled by the opposition parties commanding a majority in the upper house. The election of the chairman of the Senate was by secret ballot and the government took no exception to the mode of the election. The PM and his ministers even lauded the victory of Sanjrani. But for the recently held Senate polls, the government not only sent a reference to the Supreme Court to seek its opinion on the procedure of the election of senators but also promulgated an ordinance for conducting the polls through a show of hands. However, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) favoured the secret ballot mechanism laid down in the constitution in its reply submitted in the apex court and, thus, gave its verdict in favour of the constitution.

One thinks that the government was not concerned about the Senate elections, it was worried about its own lawmakers that they might not vote for the PTI’s nominees in the polls – and the same thing happened. Some of its MNAs did not cast votes for Hafeez Sheikh and instead supported Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani who defeated the PTI’s candidate. It infuriated the government which abused the opposition and blamed the ECP for what it called ‘fraud’ in the polls. Even a PTI lawmaker filed a reference in the ECP requesting for the disqualification of the Senator-elect who is also a former prime minister for allegedly offering bribe to the PTI MNAs – as shown in a viral video, but the ruling party failed to take any disciplinary action against its own members. Now the election of the chairman of the Senate is round the corner, but the incumbent government is tight-lipped on the open ballot procedure for this top slot and busy canvassing for its own nominee. Is it not duplicity or double standard on the part of the PTI-led government that it demanded open ballot in the Senate polls and secret ballot in the election of the chairman of the Senate? If the government is really interested in adopting the open ballot mechanism, it should promulgate another ordinance to ensure transparency in these polls as well.

Guldar Khan Wazir

Loralai