by Faisal Shakeel

There was something more to the meeting between the President of Pakistan and the chief of the largest opposition party than what was projected in the media. The debate on television channels and newspaper reports revolved around old issues and ignored the relevance of the consequences of the battle in South Waziristan and the controversy over the US aid bill setting out several conditions for the army.

The status of the issues like the 17th Amendment and the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), reported to have been the focus of the meeting, indicates more had been on the agenda. Mr Nawaz Sharif, the head of the PML-N, spearheading opposition in the Parliament, does have a stake in doing away with the 17th Amendment because it bars him from becoming the prime minister for the third time.

Even this concern does not form compelling reasons for Mr Sharif to meet the president as his party members are among the parliamentary committee, which has consensus on removing the amendment. The press said the controversial NRO, under which PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari had his corruption cases quashed to become the president, had necessitated the meeting.

It was stated that the president required Mr Sharif’s support to change the NRO into a law after placing it before the parliament. Law experts say the president knows that the NRO cannot hurt him even if it lapses because he enjoys constitutional protection against any criminal or civil process.

The current state of affairs indicates that the president is more concerned about how far Mr Sharif would go in opposing the US aid and how long would he continue to support the battle in Waziristan. He knows that with the army and the opposition already opposing the bill, the government might run into trouble.
Besides, the opposition holds the key to mounting any challenge to the government facing a severe crisis of governance and worsening law and order throughout the country.

Mr Sharif too had his reasons for meeting the president. After being removed in a military coup in 1999, Mr Sharif would want to maintain a balance between opposing the government and supporting the army’s demand to reject the US aid bill.