Pakistan - CH NISAR's - ''Ministry of Incompetence''

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan has once again revealed the staggering incompetence of his ministry when it comes to pursuing the goals of the National Action Plan (NAP) and eliminating terrorist networks from within Pakistan. On Thursday, the Interior Minister presented the much awaited performance report of the Ministry of Interior (ever since he took charge in 2013) in front of the National Assembly (NA), and the expectation was that the report would have a meaningful breakdown of NAP, since Chaudhry Nisar has been the point man for the operation ever since its launch earlier this year. But what was presented to the NA largely dealt with the internal affairs of the ministry and the PTI/PAT sit-in of 2014, whereas NAP was relegated to a few lines. The report merely reiterated the ministry’s year-old aims to set up registration forms for seminaries, development of a national anti-extremist narrative and the setting up of a Joint Intelligence Directorate (JID) without showing much in the way of progress. When pressed by other lawmakers about this lack of progress, Chaudhry Nisar protested that his ministry was not the only state institution responsible for NAP and even recalled his reluctance to take up the role as the focal point of NAP when the operation was being planned. He pleaded that the Ministry of Interior and NAP should not be conflated and suggested that he was also busy with ministry matters. In his defence, the Interior Minister pointed to the overall improvements in law and order, the Karachi operation, the reduction in suicide attacks and anti-corruption drives of his ministry. But none of these justifications cut much ice with the unimpressed colleagues of the Interior Minister in the NA and they bemusedly reflected on the absurdity of Chaudhry Nisar absolving himself of responsibility when no other state institution apart from the Ministry of Interior is better placed to take the lead on NAP.

While it is hard to deny the successes pointed out by Chaudhry Nisar, it will be premature to celebrate them too wholeheartedly because doubts remain whether these advances can be sustained. The reduction in terrorist activity may not turn out to be a definitive trend but merely suggest a regrouping of the militant outfits reeling from the momentarily energetic onslaught by the state. It should be clear to the Interior Minister that while personnel matters of his ministry may have some significance, the importance of a detailed inquiry about NAP’s progress dwarfs all other concerns. If the task is proving beyond the competence of the Ministry of Interior, perhaps the timely suggestion by PPP leader Bilawal Bhutto Zardari that a parliamentary security committee should oversee NAP is worth considering. Having a body with support from across the aisle would engender great cooperation and understanding between the opposition and government and will definitely make the progress of NAP a reality.