- It’s government’s responsibility now to pass meaningful legislation
To many in this country the Supreme Court’s decision would come as a breath of fresh air. While the verdict confirms the independence of the Khosa Court, it also reasserts the supremacy of Parliament by maintaining that legislation on the issue of re-appointment/extension of the COAS can only be done by the supreme lawmaking body. If Parliament fails to enact legislation within six months, Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s appointment would become illegal. The court proceedings also highlight the incompetence of the PTI government and its contingent of law experts and advisers who goofed up on the issue, causing embarrassment to the COAS and leaving the government with egg on its face. After promising a three year tenure to the COAS, the government now wants only six months for him!
The court concentrated only on one item related to the Army affairs where opaqueness has been allowed to prevail, though it also mentioned that there was no check on the activities that are going on in cantonment or under which law an action is being taken. It came as a revelation to many that Article 243 does not lay down any limit on the Army chief’s tenure and that files do not reveal who gave Gen Kayani an extension.
The government has submitted an affidavit assuring the court that within six months it will enact necessary legislation to comply with the court’s orders. The PTI has to realize that the commitment cannot be fulfilled through Presidential ordinances and will have to at the very least pass an act of parliament that requires a simple majority, which might be easier in the lower house, where it holds a razor thin majority, but not in the upper house where it is in a minority. The PM might therefore have to hold negotiations with the opposition which, after being pushed to the wall, is demanding nothing less than his resignation. For this the PM will have to drop his holier-than-thou posture and initiate a dialogue while conducting the necessary bargaining with the opposition.
The opposition would do well to go for a package of constitutional reforms that address not only the issues pertaining to the COAS but also bring under law the agencies that have in the past interfered in political process by bribing politicians, forging political alliances, influencing the elections and pressurizing media. For this, Parliament has to prepare a charter that precisely defines the agencies’ role, their scope and well as their limitations.
