Wealth is still a way to Senate in Pakistan

Khalid Kheshgi

 

PESHAWAR: Elected to the Senate of Pakistan in independent capacity in 2003, the outgoing Senators Gulzar Ahmad Khan and his son Waqar Ahmad Khan, also Federal Minister for Investment, are fortunate enough to win tickets from the ruling Pakistan People’s Party for March 4 Senate polls.

 

Likewise, the NWFP Minister for Irrigation Pervez Khan Khattak, who switched over his loyalty from PPP-Sherpao to Pakistan People’s Party, succeeded to obtain party ticket for his industrialist son-in-law Adnan Khan from the PPP on technocrats seat. Former provincial president of the Pakistan Peoples Party-Sherpao Pervez Khattak had won general elections in 2008 on the PPP-S electoral symbol and was appointed as parliamentary leader of the party in NWFP Assembly. He was inducted in the provincial cabinet on the PPP quota when the cabinet was expanded in the second phase.  

 

Hailing from the backward Dera Ismael Khan district in Frontier, Gulzar Ahmad Khan and his son Waqar Ahmad Khan elected as independent candidates in 2003 Senate elections at a time when there were only five independent MPAs in the then provincial assembly. After their election to Upper House of Parliament, the father and son put their weight behind the then PML-Q government. Gulzar Khan’s family made history when his younger son Ammar Khan was elected to Senate on the Pakistan Muslim League-Q ticket from the Frontier Assembly in 2006. Ammar was also stated as the second richest senator after declaring his assets whereas Senator Azam Swati, also hailing from Frontier, was declared the richest senator.  

 

Sardar Ali Khan, another resourceful person from Nowshera, was given party ticket for the second time, however, in 2003 Senate elections he got only one vote when there were ten PPP MPAs in the NWFP Assembly. Former federal minister Khwaja Muhammad Khan Hoti, had resigned from the PPP provincial president slot as protest against the alleged vote-selling of then PPP lawmakers. Similarly, the PPP MPAs failed to re-elect Farhatullah Baber to the Senate on the technocrats seat in 2003, exposing the real face of the PPP parliamentarians at that time.

 

The dirty trend of vote-selling was encouraged in the NWFP Assembly during 2003 Senate elections when nine of the PPP and three of the ANP MPAs did not cast vote to their respective party candidates on general seats. The ANP expelled three MPAs for their alleged vote-selling from the party and exposed their names to the public soon after Senate polls, however, the PPP ignored the matter. The PML-Q did not elect its candidate Engineer Fazl Hussain and openly voted to Commander Khalil in the same elections. 

In 2006 Senate elections, the then ruling Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal had apparently punished six of its MPAs for their alleged involvement in vote-selling. The Jamaat-e-Islami expelled and disqualified one provincial minister Raja Faisal Zaman and MPA Malik Hayat for not polling to the JI candidate while the JUI-F blamed and expelled two women MPAs, one minority MPA and an MPA on general seat for their alleged corruption. However, the Peshawar High Court later on restored their status as members of provincial assembly. The PPP accused two of its women MPAs of opting for the greener pasture and terminated the basic membership of Mrs Salma Baber and Shehzadi Muneeba. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz adopted meaningful silence over its MPAs Anwar Kamal Marwat, who was also provincial general secretary of the party, and the then women MPA who openly supported the Pakistan Muslim League-Q candidate Salim Saifullah Khan in 2006 elections.

 

In order to avoid possible vote-selling in the upcoming Senate elections, the ruling partners in the NWFP Assembly-ANP and PPP, had awarded party tickets to the richest candidates.   

 

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