DAWN - Cowasjee Corner; 26 July, 1998
Privilege?
By Ardeshir Cowasjee
THIS is written for the benefit of my friend Illahi Bakhsh Soomro. Having desisted from boot-blacking his hair he now wears a most distinguished air whilst presiding over his motley herd of two hundred bowers-and-scrapers who respectfully address him as 'Janab-i-Isshpeeker'.
He sits in his high chair of choice; he enjoys himself, he travels around the world attending every possible parliamentary conference at our expense. No legislation has been enacted in his assembly that has any worthwhile bearing on the welfare of the people. Whatever has been done has been in the larger interest of saving the skins of the ruling party and of ensuring survival.
Jointly and severally, the herd can do no good. But should the speakermen not save us from harassment, hurt and harm?
On July 15, I read in this newspaper that the debtors' court in Sialkot had taken up the cases of defaulter MNA Khwaja Asif, Chairman of the Privatization Commission, and his associates, all of whom had not paid back some Rs 13 million borrowed from the Agricultural Development Bank of Pakistan. The court adjourned the hearing of the cases to September on being told that the defaulters were trying to strike a compromise with ADBP. As is expected, clout will now enter the game.
On July 16, I received a letter from the Secretary of the Standing Committee on Privileges of the National Assembly, informing me that:
"Whereas a privilege motion has been moved by Khwaja Mohammad Asif, MNA, regarding alleged use of abusive language and threat by Ardsher Cowasji, columnist, on March 25, 1998, in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
"And whereas the privilege motion has been referred by the Honourable Speaker, National Assembly, to the Privilege Committee for investigation and report.
"And whereas the said privilege motion is fixed before this Committee for the above said purposes on 21/7/98, you are hereby required to appear before the Committee in person on the above said date ..."
Time being on the short side, I requested the secretary to e-mail me a copy of the privilege motion, a transcript of what was 'allegedly' said, a list of witnesses who can substantiate the allegation, and any other details which the defaulter MNA may have disclosed.
The courteous secretary obliged, faxed me a photocopy of the privilege motion which is all he had. On 13.4.98 Khwaja Asif had forwarded to the Speaker, by special messenger, marked 'most immediate', the following missive:"I beg to raise a question involving breach of my privilege under Rule 77 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business (sic.) in the National Assembly, 1992, as a Member of National Assembly.
"On 25th March 1998 the Supreme Court of Pakistan summoned me to record my statement regarding the storming of the Supreme Court building by an unruly mob on 2/4/98 (sic). (Was there really a repeat of the 28/11/97 performance?)
"Before the proceedings could start, I was introduced in the courtroom with Mr Ardsher Cowasji, columnist, by Mushahid Hussain Syed, Minister for Information and Media Development. Mr Cowasji referred to a speech of mine delivered in the National Assembly during the last session regarding a scandal involving PWD land and asked me why did I call him a blackmailer in that speech, to which I replied that the courtroom is not the proper place to discuss this matter. Mr Cowasji in response not only used abusive language, but also threatened me with dire consequences.
"Sir, this is a clear breach of my privilege and attempt to stop me from performing my duties as a parliamentarian and request that the matter be referred to the Committee on Rules of Procedure and Privileges."
The Khwaja sent copies of this motion, for information and necessary action, to seven others, including The PS and MS to the PM; the President's DG Law; PS to Minister for Law; PS to Minister for Information.
A joke, asked I of my lawyer, Barrister Khalid Jawed Khan? A joke indeed, but the jokers can harass and harm. They have the powers of a civil court to enforce your presence. Find Janab-i-Isshpeeker', said I to my G-1. After ringing around the country, an aide from Jacobabad informed us that at that precise point of time he was on the Sukkur Express in his special saloon en route to Karachi.
The next morning I found him in Karachi, swore roundly at him, he roundly swore back, and then arranged to have the hearing postponed.
Later, in my mail sent care of Dawn, I found a telegram from the "Nassembly" and a four-sheet long schedule of the hearings for July 20 and 21. 'Unbelievable' is what most of us would surely say on reading it.
The Privileges Committee would deliberate on July 20:
"1) Privilege Motion moved by (PM mb) Inamullah Khan Niazi, MNA, regarding alleged rude behaviour (rarb) of Superintending Engineer, WAPDA, Sargodha.
"2) PM mb Asfandyar Wali, MNA, re false reporting by Nawa-i-Waqt on 22/2/98.
"3) PM mb Inamullah Khan Niazi, MNA, rarb of Chief Settlement Commissioner, Lahore.
"4) PM mb Rana Nazir Ahmad Khan, MNA, rarb of DG Customs Intelligence, Islamabad.
For July 21, the schedule:
"1) Delayed flight on 6/5/98 causing inconvenience to the Speaker, NA, and other Parliamentarians due to off-loading of a passenger allegedly travelling on fake passport/documents.
"2) PM mb Khwaja Muhammad Asif MNA regarding alleged use of abusive language and threat by Ardsher Cowasji, columnist on 25/3/98 in the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
"3) PM mb Mr Javed Ibrahim Paracha MNA regarding alleged breach of privilege of the Members of the Standing Committee on Railway in its meeting held on 11/6/98."
Copies requesting attendance were sent to Committee Chairman Nawabzada Iqbal Mehdi, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Yasin Watoo, and thirteen other Committee Members, including Khwaja Asif. The nine 'movers', including Khwaja Asif, were called. Also required to attend were the Federal Secretaries of four ministries - finance, interior, railways, and water and power; chief secretary, Punjab; Chief Settlement Commissioner, Lahore; From WAPDA - Chairman, Lahore; Chairman AEB, Faisalabad; SE Sargodha, and the 'then' SE, Jang; From Customs - Chairman CBR; the 'then' and the present DG Customs Intelligence, Islamabad; from FIA the DG and DD, Karachi Airport. Summoned also - Majid Nizami, editor in chief, Nawa-i-Waqt (who did not go), his Rawalpindi editor/columnist, and me.
Copies were sent to some two dozen others, including the Attorney-General and the Accountant-General of Pakistan. The DPR of the NA was requested to arrange Press and TV coverage of the two meetings.
When I inquired about the Rules of Procedure, the NA Secretary informed me that none had been formulated. The Breach of Privilege Rules of the House of Commons were being followed. On then enquiring from Hansard, it was discovered that no such motions on such frivolous account had ever been tabled at Westminster. The man I spoke to recalled having read about one moved in 1865.
My dear Illahi Bakhsh, the company you have kept since you involved yourself in politics a quarter of a century ago has rubbed off on you. Just how many lives has your herd disturbed, how much harassment are they capable of causing? Have you no control over their stupidity?
A man who has borrowed money which he could not have borrowed without misusing his position and clout, a man who, again misusing his position, does not repay what he has borrowed, a man who takes cover under a law of sorts which he has participated in making, remains a defaulter. A defaulter, of any standing, can claim no privileges.
Should you still be in your chair when the next meeting of the Privilege Committee is scheduled, and should Khwaja Asif still wish to press his motion, would you request him to write and inform me exactly what it is that I am meant to have said, exactly what were the 'dire consequences' with which he was allegedly threatened, and explain to me how on earth anything could prevent him from doing what he has been doing for most of his adult life.
The ding-dong about the speech he made in the House when he referred to me as a blackmailing land-grabber ended long ago. On March 11, in this newspaper, I wrote: "Will Khwaja Asif, whose credibility is as good as that of those sitting with him in the National Assembly, be decent enough to name those he accuses me of having pressured and blackmailed? Also, I will be grateful if he can identify the land-grabbing 'campaigns' I have launched and am launching afresh."
Decent enough?