ISLAMABAD: Senators on Thursday called for granting equal weight to the Senate in voting during the joint session of parliament, in order to strengthen democracy and the federation.

“The concept of the Senate as a house having equal representation of the provinces is nullified when it comes to voting, on any matter, during a joint sitting of the parliament,” observed Senate Chairman Raza Rabbani during a debate to commemorate the International Day of Democracy, which was observed on Sept 15.

The chairman was of the view that the Senate was at a disadvantage during voting in joint parliamentary sessions, as even its total 104 votes could be defeated by a simple majority of the 342-member National Assembly.

In the recent past, the ruling PML-N has, on a number of occasions, threatened to pass controversial bills in a joint sitting of parliament due to its numerical strength there, if the bills were rejected by the opposition-dominated Senate.

Senate chairman suggests monument to commemorate unsung heroes who stood against military dictators

During the debate, senators also paid rich tribute to political leaders, workers, lawyers, civil rights activists, students and journalists who stood against military dictators and offered sacrifices for democracy.

The Senate chairman suggested that a national monument be constructed in Islamabad or inside Parliament House to pay homage to the unsung heroes who struggled for democracy and faced hardships during military rule.

Senators from the PPP and the PML-N paid tribute to the leaders of each other’s party for their struggle for democracy.

PPP’s parliamentary leader Taj Haider named Kalsoom Nawaz, the wife of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and former PML-N president Makhdoom Javed Hashmi for their struggle and sacrifices during the dictatorship of Gen Pervez Musharraf, while the PML-N’s parliamentary leader Mushahidullah Khan paid homage to the late Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and his daughter Benazir Bhutto for sacrificing their lives during the struggle.

Mr Khan also mentioned the late Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan, saying that he never bowed before any dictator and remained steadfast throughout his life.

The senators named Abdul Wali Khan of the Awami National Party, student activist Hassan Nasir Shaheed and some sitting members of the Senate, including Chairman Raza Rabbani and veteran Muhammad Hamza, for their struggle for the supremacy of the Constitution and democracy.

Participating in the debate, PPP’s Farhatullah Babar asked parliament to consider how to counter the new model of shielding dictators from accountability by whisking them away to a hospital in Rawalpindi.

He called for strengthening the rule of law and ending the sacred cow syndrome. “No individual and no institution should be beyond the pale of transparency and accountability,” he said.

Mr Babar said in the past political parties and judiciary were held responsible for endorsing constitutional deviations. However, under the 2006 Charter of Democracy, political parties decided never to endorse unconstitutional takeovers and subsequently, the Supreme Court buried forever the doctrine of necessity and PCO judges.

Despite this course correction by political parties and the judiciary, and despite Article 6, he said, a dictator could escape accountability, as witnessed recently in the case of Mr Musharraf, by simply walking into a hospital in Rawalpindi.

He said democracy would remain fragile and inherently unstable as long as dictators could comfortably walk away from the accountability.

Usman Kakar of the Pakhtunkhwa Mili Awami Party said the West, including Europe, and China had always supported military dictators in Pakistan. He suggested that the United Nations suspend the membership of a country where the military has imposed martial laws.

Sehar Kamran of the PPP accused the present rulers of “exploiting” democracy to protect the Sharif family. She criticised the prime minister for not attending parliamentary sessions and not presenting himself for accountability in Panamagate. She alleged that the government did not care for democratic norms, which was evident from the Model Town incident, in which a number of innocent people were shot dead by the police.

Azam Swati of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf was of the opinion that good governance was needed to curb corruption, which would help strengthen democracy.

PPP’s Dr Karim Khwaja, in an apparent reference to the military’s involvement in national affairs, said foreign policy making should be transferred from Rawalpindi to parliament.

Retired Gen Abdul Qayyum of the PML-N said that like in every institution, there were a few individuals in the army who violated their oath and abrogated the Constitution.

“As there are some people among us who invite the army to takeover, there are a few people in the armed forces who violate their oath and support the abrogation of the Constitution, which is not a good act,” he said, adding that overall, there were mostly good people in the army who wanted to see public rule in the country.

Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2016