3) Article 69 is about matters of procedure in Legislature and doesn't apply if the Speaker decides to throw out the Constitution itself. Imagine if the Speaker decides to not count the votes of Women or non-Muslim MNAs? Would that be allowed by the SC. 3/n
As the dust settles on the civilian coup here are a few key takeaways: 1)
#IK
has lost morally and politically. the
#Opposition
wanted the
#selectedPM
out and new elections, and this will happen.
#IK
dragged his feet but eventually this has been the result. 1/n
2) Beyond politics,
#IK
has now clearly undermined the
#Constitution
, the Supreme National Institution. Article 95 is a self contained provision, which gives the
#Speaker
no power once leave has been granted for
#VoNC
. A vote has to be done, no matter what. 2/n
4) That
#PTI
has now become a complete personal cult of
#IK
. This is very much in keeping with other populist leaders around the world.
#MNS
doesn't even compare and
#ZAB
will soon be shamed. 4/n
5) That the ball, as in 1954 is again the
#SupremeCourt
. We have always had people like
#JusticeMunir
who are willing to give fantastic explanations why, in effect,
#Pakistan
doesn't deserve democracy. 5/n
6) That at the core is the growing distrust of
#democracy
and the
#constitution
in
#Pakistan
. But people forget that it is actually such a distrust which has led Pakistan to not prosper and even led to civil war and disintegration. IK is pushing us again the same direction. 6/n
7) That, as shown by Robinson and Acemoglu, nations fail primarily due to a lack of 'Rule of Law'. We in Pakistan continue to undermine the 'Rule of Law' and are caught up in other less important issues. 7/n
8) That
#Constitutional
literacy is the critical need in Pakistan. People need to understand its foundational importance. Also, people need to read: See, Allen McGrath work or Hamid Khan's on how such attacks on the constitution destroy the country. 8/8.