The National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) genie is out of the bottle once again in Pakistan. Daily Times reported on May 15: The Supreme Court (SC) summoned Law Minister Babar Awan on May 25 to brief the court on the implementation of its December 16,2009 verdict on the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO)… The law secretary had resigned and… he could not appear. Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani defended the law minister,reported The News on May 17,by countering that the architect of the NRO,Pervez Musharraf should also face accountability.
The ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is constantly at loggerheads with the restored judiciary. Dawn reported on May 18: A full bench of Lahore High Court issued notice to President Asif Zardari,asking him to explain how he could simultaneously hold the dual office of the head of state and that of the chief of his party… The law ministry… said there was nothing in the Constitution which barred President Zardari from holding the office of PPP co-chairman because it was not a profitable office. The petitioners pleaded this was a violation of Article 41(1) of the Constitution.
Interior influence
Another PPP strongman is in the dock,but trying to wriggle out. Daily Times reported on May 18: A division bench of Lahore High Court (LHC) dismissed Interior Minister Rehman Maliks appeal against his conviction in two National Accountability Bureau (NAB) references. The bench… rejected the ministers appeals against his conviction for absconding from the accountability court in two references and revived the sentence… The judges remarked that one could seek court protection if he or she surrendered before it,but… Malik had deliberately avoided the service of the courts.
President Zardari granted Malik presidential pardon in the above-mentioned cases but upped the ante in the governments undeclared tussle with the superior judiciary. Dawn reported: Within hours of LHCs decision,he used his discretionary powers under Article 45… In a display of resilience,Malik obtained protective bail from the Sindh High Court,reported The News on May 19. Another report added: President Zardari has exercised his constitutional and legal authority thrice,every time on the urgent advice of the PM… but to save the skin of his cronies and NRO beneficiaries… Mr Zardari used his powers twice in the case of Malik and once to favour yet another convict Ahmad Riaz Shaikh,a former FIA employee. It was also a case of conflict of interest for the Interior Ministry to send a summary in such a hurry to the PM,advising the president to grant pardon to its own minister. A petition was filed against this controversial pardon,reported The News on May 20: A constitutional petition has been moved in LHC challenging the presidential pardon… It stated if someone was convicted… he had the right to file an appeal… in SC and… a mercy petition with the president… The counsel said the unholy manner in which the pardon has been granted showed the good governance of the government.
Terror alert
Journalist Hamid Mirs shocking Taliban connections came to the fore in a scoop in Daily Times,which reported an audio clip containing a phone chat between him and a Taliban operative. The Taliban endorsed Mirs stance that the voice wasnt his,reported Daily Times on May 18: We actively condemn the reliability of this tape since there was no conversation like that in between us and Mr Hamid Mir (sic). However,three intelligence agencies,including the ISI,confirmed it was Mir,reported Daily Times on May 20.
Faceoff with Facebook
Dawn,in its May 21 editorial commented on the furore around a few websites,including Facebook and YouTube,being blocked in Pakistan: Pakistanis should learn to protest peacefully,and in a manner that does not deprive others of their rights. On May 21,Daily Times carried a piece assessing the mood of the citizens: Students in major cities protested against the sacrilegious Internet depictions of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) that led to the blocking of popular websites,Facebook and YouTube. Dozens of students protested in Islamabad,calling for a boycott of Facebook and supporting a government ban of the website… Pakistanis have the right to know about the world. The extremists want to snatch this right from the people which will certainly help extremism, said a writer. The competition hurt Muslims… only that link should have been blocked, a student from Lahore said.
Fix fixers
After Kamran Akmals name surfaced in Pakistans most recent cricket fiasco,The News on May 21 quoted Pakistans Twenty20 captain Shahid Afridi urging authorities to take decisive action over allegations of match-fixing so that his team can focus on important assignments including next years World Cup… He believes such a scenario could prove fatal for the World Cup unless swift measures are taken.
