ajpirzada
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2008
- Messages
- 6,011
- Reaction score
- 11
- Country
- Location
Nawaz will have to backtrack to avoid brickbats
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Comment
By Ansar Abbasi
ISLAMABAD: Nawaz Sharif has started receiving all the brickbats for which he has to squarely blame himself. He was not upfront on Thursday as he normally appears. He should have admitted loudly that it was actually the Pakhtoonkhwa issue that provoked him to harp on something unbelievable.
Nobody, not even his own party leaders, is willing to buy the justifications that their boss offered at his press talk. These were totally unconvincing even to discerning souls. And on Friday Ishaq Dar, who is a member of the Rabbani Committee, is reported to have admitted that the real bone of contention was the renaming of the NWFP and not the recommended formation of the judicial commission for the appointment of judges in the superior judiciary.
Today, Nawaz Sharif stands singled out politically and that too on a popular issue of correcting the disfigured Constitution. Not even a solitary political party shares his stand. He has never faced such isolation in the recent past.
On the contrary, all the parliamentary groups, by and large, stand with the government in the sense that all of them back the proposed 18th Amendment. By supporting the package, they in fact are honouring their commitment that they demonstrated during the deliberations of the Raza Rabbani Committee.
President Asif Ali Zardari must be excited with joy and excitement over seeing Nawaz Sharif pushed in a corner. As the situation has built up and the PML-N chief pushed in an embarrassing situation, he will have to review his stand that he took at his press conference without any delay or he would earn more flak in the days to come.
He would be held as the sole person responsible if at the end of the day the good work done by the Rabbani Committee, including his own nominees, was consigned to the dustbin. He has to rise above petty political expediencies.
The PML-N’s U-turn on the constitutional package is simply incomprehensible and is in bad taste too. The PML-N chief referred to the recommended procedure for the appointment of judges as the main point of disagreement which is simply unbelievable. The whole world knows that it was a settled issue as far as the constitutional committee was concerned but still Sharif opted to take refuge behind it to shy away from the real bone of contention — the renaming of the Frontier province.
It would be in the greater interest of Pakistan if Mian Sahib backtracks what he said on Thursday, sits with Asfandyar Wali and settles the issue of renaming the NWFP, and should not press for any informal consultations with the Chief Justice of Pakistan on an issue that is the property of parliament.
Nawaz will have to backtrack to avoid brickbats
Who is feeling what after the PML-N blast
Saturday, March 27, 2010
By Tariq Butt
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is on the defensive and its top leaders are feeling shy of publicly defending its turn about but presidential quarters are happy over the grilling Nawaz Sharif is receiving.
The PPP is happy with the continuation of the key discretionary powers of President Asif Ali Zardari for some more time.“After a long time, guns have been aimed at Nawaz Sharif and we have happily been spared from the tirade for now as we are not to be accused in any way,” a cabinet member, considered part of the inner presidential circle, remarked to The News.
“Despite the fact that the president was losing all his worthwhile authority through 18th Amendment, he has readily agreed to shed all his powers. But if Nawaz Sharif wants to keep Zardari equipped with vital discretionary authority, we are better off over his strategy,” he said.
The third party, the prime ministerial camp, was somewhat depressed over the delay in transferring powers to Yusuf Raza Gilani from Zardari because of Nawaz Sharif’s sabotage of the constitutional package.
“Even without the new powers that the prime minister will be getting through the constitutional package, he is acting as the chief executive of the country,” an official said. Senator Raza Rabbani, who heads the parliamentary committee, was extremely sad and expressed his deep disappointment in its meeting on Friday, said a participant of the meeting. “Our whole work is going down the drain because of the PML-N’s stand,” he quoted the senator as saying in the deliberations.
Another committee member said Nawaz Sharif’s stand provided an opportunity to smaller parties to say that it was Punjab that was disrupting the constitutional amendment although they agreed to it despite their reservations over the freshly determined quantum of provincial autonomy.
He said the PML-N representatives were on the defensive in the meeting of the committee on Friday, which was postponed till Wednesday on their request. They wanted time to settle the contentious issue of renaming the NWFP, he said.
Most sombre PML-N stalwarts were as dejected as leading members of other political entities are over Nawaz Sharif’s bombshell as their party is earning flak from all around. “It appears as if our representatives participated in the deliberations of the Raza Rabbani parliamentary committee on constitutional reforms for nine long months just to while away the time,” one of them told The News.
“Now, there is no point in endlessly presenting a facade that we are genuinely serious to undo 17th Amendment sooner than later. Our approach has nailed the whole process of the constitutional amendment,” he admitted.
No PML-N leader this correspondent talked to was ready to come on the record to defend the U-turn. Most of them felt embarrassed and came out with unconvincing arguments. However, a few PML-N leaders were still optimistic that the main issue of agreeing on a new name for NWFP would be shortly resolved and it would not take months.
“Maximum one week or so would be required to hammer out this issue as talks are already continuing with the senior ANP leadership,” PML-N leader Khwaja Saad Rafiq said. Sources said the top PML-N leadership was conscious of the blitz of criticism on it and was pondering over measures for damage control.
One PML-N leader said Nawaz Sharif took the hardline on renaming the NWFP to put pressure on the ANP to budge from its rigid stand and also consider other nomenclatures apart from the Pakhtunkhwa. He hoped that the ANP would also show flexibility.
PML-N leaders privately conceded that as a matter of fact it was the issue of renaming the NWFP and not the judges’ appointment mechanism that prompted Nawaz Sharif to find fault with 18th Amendment.
Who is feeling what after the PML-N blast
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Comment
By Ansar Abbasi
ISLAMABAD: Nawaz Sharif has started receiving all the brickbats for which he has to squarely blame himself. He was not upfront on Thursday as he normally appears. He should have admitted loudly that it was actually the Pakhtoonkhwa issue that provoked him to harp on something unbelievable.
Nobody, not even his own party leaders, is willing to buy the justifications that their boss offered at his press talk. These were totally unconvincing even to discerning souls. And on Friday Ishaq Dar, who is a member of the Rabbani Committee, is reported to have admitted that the real bone of contention was the renaming of the NWFP and not the recommended formation of the judicial commission for the appointment of judges in the superior judiciary.
Today, Nawaz Sharif stands singled out politically and that too on a popular issue of correcting the disfigured Constitution. Not even a solitary political party shares his stand. He has never faced such isolation in the recent past.
On the contrary, all the parliamentary groups, by and large, stand with the government in the sense that all of them back the proposed 18th Amendment. By supporting the package, they in fact are honouring their commitment that they demonstrated during the deliberations of the Raza Rabbani Committee.
President Asif Ali Zardari must be excited with joy and excitement over seeing Nawaz Sharif pushed in a corner. As the situation has built up and the PML-N chief pushed in an embarrassing situation, he will have to review his stand that he took at his press conference without any delay or he would earn more flak in the days to come.
He would be held as the sole person responsible if at the end of the day the good work done by the Rabbani Committee, including his own nominees, was consigned to the dustbin. He has to rise above petty political expediencies.
The PML-N’s U-turn on the constitutional package is simply incomprehensible and is in bad taste too. The PML-N chief referred to the recommended procedure for the appointment of judges as the main point of disagreement which is simply unbelievable. The whole world knows that it was a settled issue as far as the constitutional committee was concerned but still Sharif opted to take refuge behind it to shy away from the real bone of contention — the renaming of the Frontier province.
It would be in the greater interest of Pakistan if Mian Sahib backtracks what he said on Thursday, sits with Asfandyar Wali and settles the issue of renaming the NWFP, and should not press for any informal consultations with the Chief Justice of Pakistan on an issue that is the property of parliament.
Nawaz will have to backtrack to avoid brickbats
Who is feeling what after the PML-N blast
Saturday, March 27, 2010
By Tariq Butt
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is on the defensive and its top leaders are feeling shy of publicly defending its turn about but presidential quarters are happy over the grilling Nawaz Sharif is receiving.
The PPP is happy with the continuation of the key discretionary powers of President Asif Ali Zardari for some more time.“After a long time, guns have been aimed at Nawaz Sharif and we have happily been spared from the tirade for now as we are not to be accused in any way,” a cabinet member, considered part of the inner presidential circle, remarked to The News.
“Despite the fact that the president was losing all his worthwhile authority through 18th Amendment, he has readily agreed to shed all his powers. But if Nawaz Sharif wants to keep Zardari equipped with vital discretionary authority, we are better off over his strategy,” he said.
The third party, the prime ministerial camp, was somewhat depressed over the delay in transferring powers to Yusuf Raza Gilani from Zardari because of Nawaz Sharif’s sabotage of the constitutional package.
“Even without the new powers that the prime minister will be getting through the constitutional package, he is acting as the chief executive of the country,” an official said. Senator Raza Rabbani, who heads the parliamentary committee, was extremely sad and expressed his deep disappointment in its meeting on Friday, said a participant of the meeting. “Our whole work is going down the drain because of the PML-N’s stand,” he quoted the senator as saying in the deliberations.
Another committee member said Nawaz Sharif’s stand provided an opportunity to smaller parties to say that it was Punjab that was disrupting the constitutional amendment although they agreed to it despite their reservations over the freshly determined quantum of provincial autonomy.
He said the PML-N representatives were on the defensive in the meeting of the committee on Friday, which was postponed till Wednesday on their request. They wanted time to settle the contentious issue of renaming the NWFP, he said.
Most sombre PML-N stalwarts were as dejected as leading members of other political entities are over Nawaz Sharif’s bombshell as their party is earning flak from all around. “It appears as if our representatives participated in the deliberations of the Raza Rabbani parliamentary committee on constitutional reforms for nine long months just to while away the time,” one of them told The News.
“Now, there is no point in endlessly presenting a facade that we are genuinely serious to undo 17th Amendment sooner than later. Our approach has nailed the whole process of the constitutional amendment,” he admitted.
No PML-N leader this correspondent talked to was ready to come on the record to defend the U-turn. Most of them felt embarrassed and came out with unconvincing arguments. However, a few PML-N leaders were still optimistic that the main issue of agreeing on a new name for NWFP would be shortly resolved and it would not take months.
“Maximum one week or so would be required to hammer out this issue as talks are already continuing with the senior ANP leadership,” PML-N leader Khwaja Saad Rafiq said. Sources said the top PML-N leadership was conscious of the blitz of criticism on it and was pondering over measures for damage control.
One PML-N leader said Nawaz Sharif took the hardline on renaming the NWFP to put pressure on the ANP to budge from its rigid stand and also consider other nomenclatures apart from the Pakhtunkhwa. He hoped that the ANP would also show flexibility.
PML-N leaders privately conceded that as a matter of fact it was the issue of renaming the NWFP and not the judges’ appointment mechanism that prompted Nawaz Sharif to find fault with 18th Amendment.
Who is feeling what after the PML-N blast
