QUETTA: As the coalition government in Pakistan struggles to secure sufficient parliamentary support for constitutional amendments, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari reaffirmed his party’s commitment to pursuing judicial reforms without yielding to external pressures.
During an event hosted by the Peoples Lawyers Forum in Quetta, Bilawal stated, “It is not possible to achieve essential reforms by bowing to someone else’s pressure.” He revealed that his party had been urged to either withdraw the proposed constitutional amendments or reconsider the 18th Amendment.
Bilawal highlighted the successes of the 18th Amendment, including the renaming of the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He criticized the current judicial appointment process, arguing it serves only the judges and not the nation, and emphasized the need for reform. He proposed the formation of a parliamentary committee comprising both government and opposition lawmakers to oversee judicial appointments, suggesting that a judge should not be appointed unless they secure majority support within the committee.
He pointed out the judicial system’s failure to deliver justice to victims of terrorism and noted the significant backlog of cases in various courts. To address these issues, he advocated for the establishment of a constitutional court with equal representation from all provinces, asserting that such courts should also be set up at the provincial level to ensure timely justice.
Bilawal acknowledged that consensus on the mechanisms for provincial constitutional courts is still in progress. He responded to opposition criticism regarding the proposed amendments, stating that the critiques stemmed from political differences.
He noted that Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) shares similar views on constitutional courts with the ruling coalition. Bilawal emphasized the importance of reaching a consensus with all parties regarding the constitutional package, in line with the PPP manifesto and the promises made by the late Benazir Bhutto.
“We will strive to prepare a draft that reflects the wishes of Benazir Bhutto, who advocated for judicial reforms in 2006,” he stated. Despite lacking a two-thirds majority in parliament, he pledged to work diligently to honor her commitment.
The government has attempted to advance the proposed constitutional package amid speculation about an extension of Chief Justice of Pakistan Qazi Faez Isa’s tenure, who is set to retire this October. Despite claims of reaching the necessary votes, the government has postponed the judiciary-centric amendments indefinitely.
Currently, the coalition is short by 13 votes in the National Assembly and nine in the Senate, despite ongoing efforts to gain the support of key figures like Fazl through numerous meetings between PPP and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leaders.
