Incarcerated Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Mian Mahmood-ur-Rashid, Ejaz Chaudhry and Omar Sarfraz Cheema have called for a “Charter of Pakistan” instead of a “Charter of Economy”, arguing that constitutional supremacy and political stability must precede any meaningful economic reform.
In a letter communicated through their lawyer Rana Mudassir, the PTI leaders reacted to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent statement offering a “Charter of Economy”. They said that while Pakistan undoubtedly needs a charter to emerge from its current difficulties, “Pakistan needs a ‘Charter of Pakistan’ before it needs a Charter of Economy.”
PM Shehbaz, in an address to the National Assembly on June 13, renewed his call for a “Charter of Economy” and a “Charter of Democracy”, urging the opposition to set aside political differences in the national interest. The premier said he had repeatedly invited political rivals to work together on the two charters, stressing that “Pakistan remains the common bond for all” despite differences in politics and ideology.
He also said his government had “no fight with PTI” and described members of the opposition as “our brothers”, emphasising that national unity should take precedence over partisan divisions.
However, the PTI signatories questioned whether a “Charter of Economy” alone could put the country on the right path “when constitutional supremacy exists only in books and both political and economic stability have become distant dreams”.
Stressing the link between politics and the economy, they wrote: “Everyone is aware of the fact that economic stability cannot be achieved without political stability.”
The letter argued that investment and growth thrive only where the rule of law exists, there is political and economic stability and the Constitution is supreme.
“When the constitution carries no more weight than a piece of paper, what practical value can a Charter of Economy have?” the PTI leaders asked.
Using an analogy to illustrate their point, the PTI leaders said: “There is an old saying that if the water in a well is dirty, changing the bucket will not solve the problem; first, the source of the contamination must be removed.” They added that “unless and until the root cause of the crisis is removed, no meaningful reform can succeed.”
The proposed “Charter of Pakistan”, according to the letter, should bring “all political forces, state institutions and centres of power into agreement on the complete supremacy of the Constitution”.
They said such a charter should guarantee constitutional supremacy, ensure that “the people’s vote/mandate given shall be respected”, bring political engineering to an end, keep institutions within their constitutional boundaries, provide for across-the-board accountability and safeguard constitutional supremacy, implementation of the National Action Plan and core economic policies from disruption.
The leaders also maintained that “the successful nations of the world first established their political rules of the game and only afterward achieved economic miracles”, arguing that “political stability gives birth to economic stability, not the other way around.”
Concluding the letter, the PTI leaders said that if PM Shehbaz was genuinely serious about addressing the country’s challenges, then “instead of issuing yet another political statement, he should lay the foundation for a national dialogue on a Charter of Pakistan.”
