Naseebullah Khan
Pakistan is a federal state where its upper house has been constituted on the basis of parity among all provinces. In total 104 members of Senate all four provinces enjoy equal representation. Contesting senate election of a politician out of its mother province on the quota of another province does not make sense.
This topic has been in discussion now adays and at a time when the next Senate elections are being held on April 2, for which a nationalist leader from the KPK (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) has submitted his nomination papers from Balochistan. It should be in consideration that the party of the said nominee has won only 1 provincial assembly seat in the KPK while in Balochistan its party has two votes. At the same time, a federalist party has assured its support to this candidate in the Senate election from Balochistan.
This situation has resulted in some questions. Firstly, if a party doesn’t secure required votes in a province, and launches its candidate in another province- isn’t it morally wrong? Does such party not have better candidate in the province? Will the people of the province have easily access to such candidates as compare to their access to representatives of their own province? A federalist party is supporting this candidate, why this federal party did not make him their candidate in the province where the said federal party is in a good majority? Why should Balochistan be a playground? Will the politicians of Balochistan who are supporting this move have right to complain for their representation? Balochistan has been a playground before too. A couple of years ago many governors of Balochistan belonged to other provinces. That norm was later on banned and now only those can become governor of a province who has the citizen of the province where he is appointed as governor. Should such ban not be implemented in Senate elections too?
Balochistan matters. Its representation matters more. How can peopel who have not spent a week throughout their whole life in Balochistan represent the province in Senate vigorously? Sanity must prevail. The politicians of the province should understand their responsibility and follow ethics. And, there should be a complete ban for the politicians of other province on contesting elections for Senate the quota of Balochistan. These parachuters are venom for political rights and representation of the province. It is robbery and such burglary must end.
