Qamar Zaman Kaira, former information minister and a PPP loyalist, is the latest kid on the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) block.

Led by the opposition leader, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, the National Assembly's PAC has been rarely away from media headlines for the past three years. And Khan has been a one-man show — dominating the stage and raving and ranting in front of cowering civil servants, as if this is all that is required to hold government and state accountable.

Rarely have the other members of the committee been able to capture the limelight. Or just differ with Khan — even those who are not from his party. The PPP committee members usually sat there and said nothing. (The PAC like any other parliamentary committee has a bipartisan membership — with representation from all political parties present in the National Assembly.)

But people are expecting this to change. This week, Kaira entered this auditing fray. His late arrival to the PAC club was made possible by former PAC members such as Riaz Huassain Pirzada and Sardar Bahadur Khan Sehar of the PML-Q who have joined the federal cabinet. As it is the PAC's agenda to oversee the public accounts and then also question the public office holders, federal cabinet members cannot be part of the committee.

Kaira attended a sub-committee of the PAC headed by his party colleague, Yasmin Rehman.

But soon after the meeting started, it seemed as if there was only one man in charge. He was authoritative — not just in his demeanor but also the way he framed and posed questions to the natural resources ministry officials who were there to answer audit objections about the financial affairs of their ministry. That he speaks well simply added to his sense of confidence and authority.

In other words, it was obvious that Kaira had not been sent to the PAC just by chance. It is a deliberate move by the PPP to provide some counter pressure on the Khan who has for three years roared alone in the PAC.

The timing too is important.

So far the PAC has only taken up annual audit reports of the previous years, some of them as late as the 80s. But last month, audit reports for the financial years 2008-2009 and 2009-2010, were laid before the National Assembly. These will be taken up by the PAC in its upcoming meetings scheduled for the last week of August.

And Khan will have the opportunity not just to take rhetorical potshots at the Gilani government but actually be dealing with and questioning officials about current financial embezzlement and irregularities in various government departments.

The PPP can no longer afford to sit back and let Khan rule the roost. This is why, suggest some, the loyal and hawkish Kaira has been sent to the PAC. He is there to make sure that no one side or person gets to be the only protagonist around.

That the PPP is no longer going to let the PAC be an instrument of the opposition was also obvious from the recent assertions of Senator Dr Babar Awan.

During a press conference this week, Senator Dr Babar Awan, a close aide of President Zardari, said as long as Khan would run the PAC within the parameters of its constitutional role, the government will accept its recommendations.

Never before has any senior government functionary retaliated to Khan's various PAC related statements. Awan's retaliation came in response to a press conference held by Khan last Saturday.

He had complained then that the government was not taking the PAC seriously and even threatened to resign from the committee's chairmanship, if the government remained indifferent to recommendations for actions against corrupt government officials.

So Khan is in for some real action in the PAC — but from now on, it may not be to his liking.

Be that as it may, this is not the only headache Khan faces. His troubles at home in the PMLN are also serious. Khan's rivalry with real estate tycoon, Riaz Malik, is the talk of the Pindi town. And the alleged meetings between the tycoon and Nawaz Sharif have given rise to rumours galore that all is not well between the house of Khan and the house of Sharif.

Political circles are rife with reports that Khan is so miffed that he is considering resigning from both positions — leader of the opposition in the National Assembly and Chairman PAC. No wonder then that the next PAC session is being awaited with bated breath.

Will there be fireworks when the Khan of PMLN runs into the loyalty and rhetoric of the Kaira of PPP? What will the new audit reports reveal? Will they throw up huge scams and scandals or will there be not much to write home about? Or will Khan just throw in the towel and go home, leaving the PPP to celebrate?

For the answers to all this and more, keep watching this space.

khawar.ghumman@gmail.com