Why Zardari be heard?

No, there is little justification Prime Minister Gilani is, though, trying hard to ensure that President Zardaris address to the joint session of Parliament is heard in pin-drop silence. He is calling every Tom, Dick and Harry in politics to get cooperation, though his plea is not being heeded by any prominent leader of political parties represented inside Parliament. The question is: why should Zardari be heard? What good has he done to make elected representatives sit through his rhetoric? Has he or his party made any effort to resolve issues confronting the nation since he assumed power in 2008? Zardari and PPPs failings are numerous. To list a few: the PPP government has failed to control the sky-rocketing prices; the menace of gas and power load-shedding has worsened; flood victims are still languishing in camps; Balochistan is in flames; Karachis target killings have assumed alarming proportions; the law and order situation is totally out of control; the economy is in shambles with no corrective planning in place; countrys foreign policy has no direction and Pakistan has become a subservient state of the United States; and India is trying to browbeat us and dictate terms. Therefore, Zardari has hardly anything to offer to the nation. But the worst thing is the release of Raymond Davis, compromising national interest to please US leadership in the hope that dollars would start pouring in from Washington and IMF. Time will unravel the real story. People are hurt and annoyed and want a plausible explanation by the President since the blame game, in full swing at present, is an attempt to pass the buck. Everyone knows the ultimate responsibility lies with the federal government. Ministers of Zardaris party, who had been thrown out of the Punjab cabinet, put up an ugly show in the Punjab Assembly. They created rumpus, with PPP MPAs playing football with plastic 'lotas inside and outside the assembly building, forcing the proceedings to be adjourned for more than three days. Why should then the PPP expect the PML-N MNAs to demonstrate a softer behaviour? It should be ready to face the music. No doubt, Presidents address to the joint session of Parliament is a constitutional requirement introduced by President Zia, the objective of which was to present a fact-sheet of governments achievements and announce its future agenda. People are fully conscious, thanks to a vibrant media, that PPP has no achievements nor any concrete agenda to resolve their problems. They would also like to know the conspiracy behind Davis release. Would the President share the facts with them?

ePaper - Nawaiwaqt