18th amendment: bone of contention!

The controversy over the 18th amendment of the constitution of Pakistan is getting deeper. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Monday that the National Accountability Bureau can arrest his entire family but it still won't deter him from changing the PPP's stance on democracy, the National Finance Commission and the 18th Amendment. This is notable that the accountability court hearing the Toshakhana reference against former president Asif Ali Zardari will frame charges against the PPP leader on September 9, and today, Zardari appeared before the accountability court to attend a hearing in the reference. Due to the COVID-19 situation, the party leadership had advised workers not to attend his hearing. The NAB reference filed against Zardari and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif accuse them of obtaining the cars from Toshakhana (gift depository) by paying 15% of the price of the cars. In the same reference, the court has deferred former prime minister Nawaz Sharif's indictment until September 7. Zardari also received cars as gifts from Libya and the UAE when he was president and used them for his personal use instead of depositing them in the treasury, the anti-graft body had alleged.

The 18th amendment is the lengthiest amendment to the constitution of Pakistan: it brought about 102 changes in the constitution like large-scale amendment required efforts of all political stakeholders in Pakistan. Hence, the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reform, which drafted the amendment, had the representation of all major political parties. The committee took over nine months to discuss 986 proposals from civil society and received inputs and approval from all major political parties. It was passed with the consensus of all 17 parliamentary parties in the National Assembly of that time. Yet the controversies over the 18th amendment began soon after its adoption by the National Assembly in 2010.

The 18th amendment to the Constitution is something that was passed in 2010 under Asif Ali Zardari’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government, and that amendment curtailed the powers of the president as well as the central government as a whole. Instead, it devolved more powers to the states, including better allocation of financial resources to the states.

But this decentralization of power is unbearable for the Pakistan Army, which wants to keep all the power in its hands. So the Army is now eyeing revocation of the 18th Amendment to the Constitution. And for this, the government of Pakistan headed by Imran Khan, which remains a puppet in the hands of the army, is playing an important role. After 2018, the PTI government is supporting the establishment and criticizing the 18th amendment role in the region. Prime Minister Imran Khan also showed favor for the presidential form of the government.

The 18th had a very wide ambit. It devolved power to the provinces and reduced the scope of executive authority at the Centre. It established structures or refined those with mandatory jurisdiction of concurrence by the provinces. To many, the spirit of the 18th tilted too far to border on becoming confederal from federal.

Since this 18th amendment debate coincides with the fake bank account case levied by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on the PPP’s leadership, some critics argue that the PPP’s pro-18th amendment campaign is just a ploy to distract the public. While the ongoing corruption charges might be causing the PPP leadership to lose sleep at present, there is a far stronger reason for their vehement defense of the 18th amendment: it warrants high financial and legislative autonomy to the PPP through its government in Sindh.

The central point of debate on the 18th amendment is one: the division of resources and legislative power between center and provinces. Those criticizing the 18th amendment are of the view that it has “weakened the center without necessarily strengthening the provinces.” The critics argue that provinces do not have the necessary capacity and resources to manage the new responsibilities. Some argue that since the shift of power was so abrupt, it resulted in a tug of war between federal and provincial governments, creating confusion and duplication of authority.

The leadership of the PPP rejects all these criticisms. For them, the controversy is just a conspiracy to curb the country’s democratic forces. They argue that provincial governments have both the will and capability to fulfill responsibilities given by the 18th amendment, but are facing issues because of the unwillingness of the center to transfer these new powers and resources to provinces. They even asserted that the charges on the PPP leadership under fake account cases are part of a “grand plan” to compel the party to take away its support for the 18th amendment.

The government of Pakistan is in clutches of the Army. And its policies towards total centralization can tear apart the federal structure of Pakistan. On the one hand, when the demands of separate nations are vocal from different provinces of Pakistan, such a step reminds the conditions at the time of Bangladesh's birth.