It’s official.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
An opinion piece on the three Presidential candidates.
http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/sep-2007/28/columns1.php
Musharraf vs Wajih vs Faheem
M.A. Niazi
The presidential elections on October 6 shall be a walkover for the incumbent Pervez Musharraf and the armed forces of Pakistan, while opposition candidate Wajihuddin Ahmad stands no chance whatsoever of winning. Wajihuddin should be a front runner because as a former judge of the Supreme Court he should be almost certain to win. So far, the most successful president has been Rafiq Tarrar, who was a retired Supreme Court judge, before he became a PML-N senator. Wajihuddin has no experience as a legislator, but having been the Chief Justice of the Sindh High Court, he has the requisite experience needed in a president. The Pakistani president is not just a head of state and a symbol of the unity of the federation. He has substantial power under the 1973 constitution, such as the appointment of the service chiefs due in 2010, provincial governors (due right now), and chairmanship of the Security Council (due all the time).
Would Wajihuddin be qualified to perform these and other functions, if he had not served with such distinction on the Sindh High and Supreme Court? He would be well served by a more political background, but he has been a rather reclusive lawyer since he left the Supreme Court in January 2000 when he was one of many judges of the court who had been elevated from the Sindh High Court upwards towards that bench who refused to take oath under the PCO that was promulgated by the then Chief Executive and now the incumbent president, then and now COAS, Pervez Musharraf. Wajihuddin has lost a lot of political experience by not entering politics right away after retirement like Rafiq Tarrar did. He is the son of a former Chief Justice of the West Pakistan High Court. He should be well acquainted with the do’s and don’ts of the presidency, it should be no advantage to President Pervez Musharraf that he is the son of a foreign office joint secretary, and that he has been president since 2001 should not be arguments in his favour or should not symbolise his greater suitability for the post. In fact at the moment in Pakistan, the best person or persons ready to contest a presidential election would be someone who has retired as a Supreme Court judge. The politicians, who might hanker after the post, should know that it involves a thorough knowledge of the law and constitution as either stands, and how both are interpreted by the bureaucracy and the judiciary, should be essential knowledge for the president. Such knowledge is not attained by either former politicians or serving military men. It is restricted to former bureaucrats or those who have served as members of Pakistan’s higher judiciary. Therefore, the post of the president should go to a former judge without any further hope of becoming a Chief Justice, like Wajihuddin Ahmad or Rafiq Tarrar. Wajihuddin Ahmad is about as suitable a candidate for the post of president as can be found.
If the parties must have a candidate of their own, then Makhdoom Amin Faheem has been nominated by the PPP. He seems a good candidate too. The problem with Makhdoom Amin Faheem is that the PPP has got in the habit of naming him its candidate for one office or another. Makhdoom Sahib has twice contested for the prime minister ship on behalf of the PPP without success. The PPP has twice named a successful candidate for president, Ghulam Ishaq Khan and Farooq Leghari. The first was named so that the establishment would be satisfied, and so that Benazir Bhutto was named PM. The second was purely Benazir’s choice and as a party man who had power under article 58(2)(b) while the PPP had a majority in the National Assembly. In both cases, Benazir was dissolved by the very president whom she got elected. So perhaps it is not such a good idea for the PPP to elect a president. So Amin Faheem is apparently not the president Benazir wants elected. The president is fully empowered under article 58(2)(b) to dissolve the House whenever he sees fit. So Benazir would not like to run the risk of having her own man deliver the killer blow as Farooq Leghari did. Hence, she is likelier than not to let Pervez Musharraf fulfil his destiny as the saviour of Pakistan’s national interest by being elected president to a second term, while remaining in uniform. Thus, she has not put up Amin Faheem simply to throw it all away by a mass resignation from the assemblies, as demanded by the APDM. Instead she is more likely to have all her legislators boycott the presidential elections or have the vote for a PPP candidate, whether or not he has got the support of other parties or not. Amin Faheem would be a good candidate for president because he is an experienced hand having been a federal minister thrice in two cabinets (in the second there was a reshuffle of portfolios) and as his son Jamilul Zaman was this time almost Chief Minister of Sindh. His father was Makhdoom Talibul Maula, and apart from being a towering spiritual personality, was also a leading political force in Sindh. Makhdoom Amin Faheem inherited the support of the Sarwari Jamaat when he became the Makhdoom of Hala Sharif. All this makes Makhdoom Amin Faheem more then suited to be the president of Pakistan. But we should ask ourselves whether the election of Wajihuddin or Amin Faheem serves the national interest. Does either of them guarantee the appointment of the right sort as army or intelligence chief? Does their election mean that war in Waziristan will continue to be prosecuted, as it is today? Or will their election mean that the war on terror will be fought with as much enthusiasm as today?
The answer is that we can’t be sure. But with Pervez Musharraf, we can be, and we are. Therefore, there should be no doubts about the results of this election. Pervez Musharraf’s lawyer reveals to the Supreme Court that if not elected, the person remains COAS. In which case, he will probably impose martial law. He will make certain that he does not loose his job and command. Though he holds office only by his own pleasure as president, and then can be easily replaced by someone else who became president, he should remain in office until he has totally reformed Pakistani politics. So, he must be elected. Therefore, when the PML-N, MQM members go in to vote, there will be no harm if they were to carry the latest in modern technology, the phone with camera. Musharraf deserves re-election because he has ensured the farm-to-market roads, water supply scheme, gas and electricity to the villages. Personally selected Shaukat Aziz as Prime Minister, Chaudhry Pervez Elahi as Punjab Chief Minister, and been good for Pakistan generally. So why should he not get another tenure? He should be voted for by all the legislators who take part in this election, whether they belong to the treasury or opposition. He has been so crucial to the vital national interest that he has come up with the internationally acclaimed theory of enlightened moderation. He has shown that Pakistan can be made a laboratory for enlightened moderation, so shouldn’t he be given another term to prove this in the other cities of Pakistan other than Islamabad.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Congratulations to all :-)
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Congratulations to all :-)
Yup, elections and the ballot box are the way, not protests and violence.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Indeed.
Thank God for Democracy in Pakistan. :k:
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Musharraf's covering candidates , NA Speaker Amir Hussain and Senate Chairman Muhammadmian Soomro – and those of Fahim’s covering candidate Nawabshah District Nazim Faryal Talpur(Zardari's sister) nominations were also accepted.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Yup, elections and the ballot box are the way, not protests and violence.
Only as long as they result in a dictator's victory. Sure. Like the idea.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Bhaijan, people have the right to vote for anyone they want. If it means victory for the candidate of their choice then so be it. It is called DEMOCRACY.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Yup, elections and the ballot box are the way, not protests and violence.
Whole thing is farce & everybody knows it. A person who came to power through power of bullet and not ballet is hardly in position to use farce ballot to gain legitimacy.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
^
Wajeehuddin and Fahim seem to participating in this so-called farce. :)
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
^ The Free Judiciary has spoken. Time to move on and work for the continued betterment of Pakistan.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Bhaijan, then why the need for the unifrom? And since when is Uniform = Democracy?
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
^ Wajeehuddin and Fahim seem to participating in this so-called farce. :)
And that proves what? Saddam Hussian was winning every elections in Iraq for last 30 years with 99.99% votes. BTW, if we already know who is going to win than what is the point of this so called election?
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
And that proves what? Saddam Hussian was winning every elections in Iraq for last 30 years with 99.99% votes. BTW, if we already know who is going to win than what is the point of this so called election?
Shosha bhi tou zaroori hai :)
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Ask the Supreme Court. Free Judiciary has given its verdict, just as the Free Judiciary gave its verdict in the CJ case.
God Bless Pakistan. God Bless the Free Judiciary.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Democracy is not a local phenomena pai jan, unless ur definition of it revolves around 8th, 7th and 15th amendment. If it does, then I would like to see you vote for the military strong man in your country.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
No democracy is to bring an amendment into constitution so that no one can vote against party line even if party line is wrong! GA democracy, GA NA and BB
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Or an amendment to make one person Amir ul Momineen for life? Neither do 15 wrongs make 16 rights nor does ur example answer my question pai jan. If anything it is a shining example of democracy as the whole idea got shot down because people opposed it, even though our ganja savior had the majority to carry out the amendment. 
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
And that proves what?
Proves that whatever Pakistani opposition parties say about "sham" elections, they still want to be very much part of the process.
Re: Nominations of Musharraf, Amin Fahim, Wajih approved
Aalsi we need democracy, not topi drama!