KARACHI, Oct 17: The post-election scenario in Pakistan signifies a critical situation like that after the 1970 polls, and if the election results were not accepted by the government and political parties, it may pose serious threat to sovereignty and integrity of the country.

“It will require prudent policies and political expediency to handle the situation on part of all political elements who are conscious of the negative fallout in case they failed to develop a consensus on major national issues”.

These views were expressed by leaders of various political parties at a seminar on “Election Results: The Emerging Scenario”, organized by the Pakistan Press Foundation here on Thursday.

Jamaat-i-Islami deputy chief Prof Ghafoor Ahmed stressed that politicians should observe sanity, patience and expediency while holding talks for formation of government, otherwise, he apprehended that the current scenario might take an ugly turn, spelling undesirable consequences for the country.

In response to remarks that religion and politics should be separated, Prof Ghafoor maintained that such a demand would appear justifiable in a non-Muslim country, but it can never be implemented in Pakistan.

“Political parties are conscious of the inherent risks if they do not reach a consensus and for this the People’s Party Parliamentarians chief Makhdoom Amin Fahim has adopted a give-and-take policy and held talks with the PML (Q) and the Millat Party leaders, seeking political consensus for formation of governments at the centre and in provinces,” he remarked.

Kunwar Khalid Younus, an MNA-elect of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, said it was quite surprising that the storm of MMA which swept through the NWFP and Balochistan failed to leave a similar impact in other parts of the country.

“Despite their intense efforts in the 1993 elections, the religious parties had secured less than ten seats and the total votes polled in their favour was about 10 per cent of the total votes cast, which, he said, showed the graph of their popularity,” he remarked.

Referring to a report of an Islamabad-based NGO, he said it clearly mentioned that the PML (Q) and the MMA got maximum coverage on the state electronic media.

“Some 30km away from Karachi where transmission of the newly- established private channels are not available, the role of the PTV becomes crucial in affecting the thinking of rural population,” he contended.

He said the new government would have to review the foreign policy of the country, besides improving economic and law and order situations.

“The foreign policy pursued by the present government in the post-Sept 11 events was the need of the hour as the country was exposed to grave risks.”

He stressed the need for pursuing prudent and well-thought policies in formation of governments in the NWFP and Balochistan as any deviation from it might cause irreparable damage for the integrity of the country.

Former Sindh Governor and PML (N) leader Mamnoon Hussain referred to the role of the ISI in political affairs. He said the political role was set in motion by the first PPP government headed by Z.A. Bhutto and later successive political governments pursued the same approach.

“It is incumbent upon the future government to contain the role of the ISI in affairs of political parties,” he added.

He claimed that the government did its utmost to eliminate the PML (N) from political horizon, however, it was totally oblivious to the history, as in the past similar attempts had failed to elicit the desired results. He cited the instance of the PPP which despite the best efforts of Gen Zia continued making its mark on the political history of the country.

Mamnoon Hussain observed that the new government might not be able to complete its tenure, as, he added, circumstances clearly indicated that the next elections would be held within a year.

He attributed the success of the MMA to a sequel of policies of the present government which compelled the masses to vote overwhelmingly in favour of the religious parties.

Fazal Qureshi of the PPI said a hung parliament was very much written on the walls. He said new faces have emerged after the elections due to graduation condition and they would hopefully play a positive role in the parliament.

“Now our efforts should be focussed on strengthening democracy and vital institutions in the country”.

Bureau Chief of AFP, Mazhar Abbas and president of the PPP (SB), Karachi, Nazir Maddi, also spoke. — PPI