Chaudhry Nisar: ''Alarming virulence''

THE FRONTIER POST

What kind of an alarming virulence is this that Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the leader of opposition in the National Assembly, has been indulging in so arrogantly over these days? Now he says he would not talk with the government party over the nomination of the interim prime minister. Does he think that he is above the constitution or enjoys some sort of a veto power? The constitution specifically lays down that as leader of opposition he is to talk this with the leader of house. This is a must. So he will be doing no favour to anyone if he talks. It is his bounden duty to do it. And the taxpayer is paying him not to flout the constitution but to abide by it and carry out all the duties, tasks and responsibilities the constitution enjoins on him. Ironically, he never tires of reading out constitution even at the drop of a hat, when it suits him. When the PPP-led government struck a deal with Tahirul Qadri, he was furious. How could Qadri be consulted for interim prime minister's nomination, he thundered. It is unconstitutional, he fumed, reminding all and sundry that constitutionally this consultation could only be held between the leader of house and the leader of opposition. And now he says he would not talk about this with the leader of house. Why indeed he is so resolved to ratchet up the tensions where should exist none? Why indeed is he behaving as if he and his party are not going into an electoral contest but in a war? Like a little czar, he says all the governors must be changed; the entire top echelons of the provincial administrations must be changed; and the secretaries of several ministers at the centre must be changed. Are we going into an election or into an administrative overhaul? Appallingly, he says he would not accept the nominations of the interim chief ministers in Sindh and Balochistan. But who is he to accept or reject those nominations if made in line with the stipulations of the constitution? After all, this country is not the real estate of anybody; nor is it the sultanate of anybody. No wrestling ring either is it of anyone. It belongs to 180 million people, who overwhelmingly are disgusted of the present crop of the political class from one to all and fed up with its shenanigans. With his rancour, stridency and arrogance, he may be getting the headlines. But the people's loathing he is culling in volumes. And how does he square up such contradictions in his stances that when Qadri asked for the re-composition of the election commission, he was all hue and cry? And now he himself is staging sit-ins for what he calls the empowering of the election commission. In any case, his is not the party alone that is flapping its wings feverishly to jump into the electoral fray. There are many other contenders, some even presently carrying more wider nationwide credentials. So who is he to arrogate to himself and his party the sole prerogative of agreeing this or disagreeing that when many other putative power contenders also are in the field? Why indeed is he so hell-bent on fraying the tempers when even otherwise the upcoming poll, by every indication, portends to be very contentious, divisive and controversial? Why is he after confrontations so insanely when the nation cannot afford even a slight confrontation at this point in time, so delicately-placed it is? Gigantic challenges are confronting it both internally and externally, to cope with which it needs harmony, solidarity and unity among the ranks of the nation, not chasms, fissures and divisions. This is not something that is hidden or not in full public view. Even a babe knows of it. And by no stretch of imagination the Chaudhry could be unaware of it. Yet he is behaving rashly and recklessly. He must tone down. He is no emperor or czar and the people are no slaves of him. He is just a politician like so many of them strutting on the national political landscape. And behave he must like one. He must speak logic, rationality and sanity. Pungency and rancour he must eschew. The people would surely do well without his insanity.