Some salient features of the proposed 18th amendment:
~The set of reforms, known as the "18th Amendment Bill" is expected to be passed by the two-chambered parliament, effectively turning Zardari into a titular head of state.
~ Reportedly the draft of what is to become the 18th Amendment itself includes 95 amendments to the 1973 Constitution. These 95 amendments will effect 70 Articles of the existing Constitutions. There are three “schedules” and one “Annexure” in the draft package.
~In particular, the 18th Amendment will undo the impacts of the 8th Amendment (enacted by Gen. Zia ul Haq) which had altered over 90 Articles of the Constitution, and the 17th Amendment (enacted by Gen. Pervez Musharraf) which had altered 26 Articles of the Constitution.
~The new name of the NWFP is to be Khyber-Pakhtunkwa.
~The draft proposes removal of many past amendments added by military rulers, including the 17th Amendment.
~The draft abolishes the “concurrent list” and gives much more provincial autonomy than is now available to the provinces. The Council of Common Interest has been given additional powers and the provinces have been given more say on national matters by enhancing their representation in the council.
~Reportedly the draft “purges” the name of gen. Zia-ul-Haq as President from the Constitution (it is not yet clear what this means in practice).
~The 27-member parliamentary committee was constituted on June 23 last year to revisit the 1973 Constitution in order to repeal the 17th Amendment and strike a balance of powers between the president and the prime minister, including removal from the Constitution of the controversial clause 58(2)b.
~The original Constitution was passed in the first PPP government, which has also been the architect of the first amendments to it.
~The all-party parliamentary committee has revisited all 278 articles of the Constitution and proposed amendments to about 100 of them.
~A consensus has emerged on reshaping the precincts of provincial autonomy by abolishing all items from the Concurrent List and handing them over to the provinces.
~The bill is likely to be passed by far more than the two-thirds super-majority needed in the parliament because it has been drafted by a parliamentary committee made up of all political groups.
Sources:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/...t+draft--bi-05
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/...mendment-qs-06
http://pakistaniat.com/2010/04/01/18th-amendment-text/
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