When will democracy come in the political parties of Pakistan?

The third most important post in the party of former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif after him and Shehbaz Sharif is also now held by the Sharif family. Maryam Nawaz will now work as the senior vice president and chief organizer of the party and will have all the powers regarding the reorganization of the party.

Earlier, several members of the Sharif family, including Hamza Shahbaz Sharif, Ishaq Dar and Abid Sher Ali, held party posts and government positions. Scenes of hereditary politics are not new in Pakistan. The names of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Benazir Bhutto, Bilawal Bhutto, Asif Ali Zardari and their sister Ezra Pechuho in the Pakistan People’s Party show the family hold on the party.

Pakistan’s prominent analyst Tahir Malik while talking to DW said that there is no such political party in Pakistan, which fulfills the definition of an ideal political party. According to him, the personal influence on political parties in Pakistan can be estimated from the fact that many parties are recognized by the name of their leaders, like the name of Muslim League-Nawaz is named after its leader, “Pakistan. After the formation, there was no political environment in the country, there was a dictatorship for thirty five years and in the rest of the period, sometimes hybrid and sometimes the chief executive system was used. In this way, the political culture could not be developed. In Pakistan, the state structure did not feel the need to support the political forces, but the weaknesses of the political forces were used as opportunities. In this way, civil servants mostly dominated the country.

Tahir Malik explains that political parties do not need restructuring, “When a political party leader comes to power by dealing with powerful circles, why does he need to organize his party at the grass root level.” According to him, our political system is not run by the power of vote, it is run by some other people. He further says that if the elections here are fair, then the political parties can come to reorganize their party and take party decisions through consultation. “I think the political parties have more responsibility than the establishment for the strengthening of democracy in the country, if they come to dialogue, tolerate dissenting voices, give workers their rightful place and their voters. Democracy can take root in the country if sincere behavior is adopted to solve the problems. “

Renowned journalist Murtaza Solangi told DW that political culture could not develop in the country due to long dictatorship. According to him, some families resisted the dictatorship and received public recognition, “but despite all this, hereditary politics cannot be defended.” They can also give suggestions but the final decision is taken by the family leadership. No candidate found. A similar situation can be seen in the families of Pervez Khattak and Asad Qaiser.

Murtaza Solangi says that for the improvement of this situation, it is necessary that the people keep raising their voices against the undemocratic behavior of the political parties.

Senior journalist Abdullah Tariq Sohail says that Pakistan’s political history is full of stories of martial law, semi-martial law and civilian government in need of institutions. Student Unions were the nursery of politics, from where young people with leadership skills were available to political parties, but by eliminating this nursery, the process of developing leadership in Gumla was started. , which holds regular elections. In the rest of the parties, management is done in the name of elections.

Abdullah Tariq Sohail believes that if the democratic system is allowed to run for twenty years without any interference, then the democratic culture of the country can improve, “Until education is not common in the country, people do not get awareness and social At the surface, people are not aware of their rights, it would not be reasonable to expect the improvement of the democratic system.

After Chaudhry Zahoor Elahi in PML-Q, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, Chaudhry Monis Elahi, Imran Masood, Wajahat Hussain and Shafaat Hussain etc. are reflecting the deep imprint of Chaudhry family on the party. In the Awami National Party, after Wali Khan and Begum Naseem Wali Khan, Isfandyar Wali, Amil Wali Khan, Ghulam Ahmed Bilor and Samar Bilor etc. also show family influence on this left-wing party.

A religious party like Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (F) is also not free from family influences. After Maulana Mufti Mahmood, Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Maulana Atta Rahman, Haji Ghulam Ali, and Asad Mahmood have taken the identity of a family in this Jamaat.

In parties with personal and family influence, important positions are given to family members during the days of power, and even in the case of opposition, certain families occupy important positions, including the leader of the opposition, and in important committees.

Interestingly, according to the rules of the Election Commission, all political parties conduct elections within themselves and even as a result of these “fair” elections, only their close family relatives are elected to party positions. The story of election expenses is similar. Therefore, the increasing role of rupee money in politics has further limited the participation of ordinary workers in the political process.