‘A rubber stamp assembly’

President PML (N) Punjab Sardar Zulfiqar Khan Khosa says…


“It is all purposeful with the intention to eliminate individuals who have not abandoned their respective parties and have remained loyal to their convictions, thereby remaining firm in their stance since October 1999. They have not sold out the national and party interests for personal gains. By no means, any body can claim that a simple graduate would serve better the interests of his constituency and district.

“Basically, it requires experience. Under the present Constitutional Amendments–without any legal standing–it is the desire of the present government to bring raw and inexperienced individuals into the parliament and assemblies, who will be gullible and also will be succumbing to the pressure exerted by the government. This move certainly does not serve national interests.

“Here I want to dispel a misperceived notion that it is only the PML(N) which is going to be hit hard by this amendment. Apart from a few exceptions, all the disqualified members have joined the PML (QA). They would be the major losers. After the coup (October 1999), they are no longer our liability. In a meeting of their faction, a leader said, 'We do have candidates, but no voters. They (N-faction) has voters, but no candidates.' I think they are sadly mistaken as we are facing difficulties in the choice of candidates. Hence we have not been as adversely affected as it is perceived by others. There is nothing which books teach us. As a provincial education minister, I had seen that even a Masters degree holder could not write a simple application, what to talk of graduates. A very lage number of them have never served any assembly. They do not know the ABC of legislation. Consequently, they would be dependent on the powers that to be. This is what the present military regime wants–a rubber stamp assembly."

As told to Aamer Waqas Ch