True democracy
Sir,
The leaders of most of our political parties are authoritarian by nature. The recent PML-N intra-party election proved that its leader cannot tolerate any opposition – he was elected unopposed after his opponent was disqualified. This reminded me of how Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was elected unopposed from his home town Larkana in the rigged 1977 elections – his rival Jan Mohammed Abbasi was picked up and held incommunicado so he could not submit his papers to the ECP. Although Bhutto would have won the elections anyway, he was too insecure to allow anyone to stand against him. The same trait can be observed in the PTI chairman, Imran Khan, the former president Asif Zardari and the founder of the MQM. The Jamaat-e-Islami and the Awami National Party are perhaps the only parties that conduct transparent elections. The leaders of these parties often consult with senior party members before taking decisions.
It’s good that the Supreme Court has held that the prime minister cannot decide state matters without the consent of the cabinet. Let’s hope that the prime minister follows the order. This can be the first step to introduce true democracy in the country.
Shakir Lakhani,
Karachi.
December 2, 2016

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