June 05, 2006	Monday	Jumadi-ul-Awwal 8, 1427

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LAHORE, June 4: Federal minister and senior ruling PML leader Ejazul Haq proposed on Sunday a serious and extensive debate in parliament and outside on a new political system which better suited the country.

Talking to Dawn here, he said parliamentary and presidential systems and even the martial laws tried in the past had created autocratic leaders, who, in the garb of democracy, had ruled the country as dictators. These systems, he alleged, had always revolved around individuals, as a result of which state institutions got weakened with the passage of time.

He said time had come when the matter should be discussed afresh, taking into account all its aspects.

In his opinion, Pakistan would have to evolve a system which was the mixture of all three systems tried in the past.

This is the first time that a senior leader of the ruling party has called for a debate on the need for a new and better political system.

The minister for religious affairs, Ejaz said a ‘troika’ comprising the president, the prime minister and the army chief had run all systems and whenever two of them joined hands, the third had to quit. This situation should now come to an end, and it would be possible only if the nation developed a consensus on a new system of governance.

Answering a question, he said Chaudhry Shujaat Husain was running the party quite satisfactorily and there was a consensus at all tiers that he should stay on for another term.

He dismissed opposition’s criticism of various amendments made to the Constitution after the October 1999 takeover by Gen Musharraf.

The Constitution, he said, was not a divine book which could not be amended. He recalled that at least seven amendments had been made by the late Zulfiukar Ali Bhutto, who had played the key role in framing the document.

He said another major amendment was made by Mr Sharif, in cooperation with the other political parties, to annul the Eighth Amendment. Ejazul Haq said if amendments made by one ruler were valid, there was nothing wrong with those made by Gen Musharraf. He pointed out that the Supreme Court had mandated the general to amend the basic law to meet the requirements of the situation.

Answering a question, the religious affairs minister said for the time being the role of the army in governance should continue through the National Security Council.

However, he said, it would gradually come to an end as the political system would strengthen. Ejazul Haq ridiculed former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s assertion that he was not aware of the Kargil episode and that he had come to know of it after a telephone call from Indian prime minister Vajpayee.

A minister in the Sharif cabinet, Ejaz said Mr Sharif was fully on board and he was kept informed by the army leadership of all developments.