Much-trumpeted ‘supreme parliament’ is gone, leaving behind un-ending stories of corruption, default and nepotism. On Wednesday, the Election Commission of Pakistan received two lists from the National Telecommunication Corporation comprising names of 733 ex-ministers, former senators and MNAs belonging to the various political parties, including the PPP and PML-N, who have defaulted or have yet to pay their dues for availing the telephone services, notwithstanding, the big guns’ bank loans default that runs into billions. The first NTC list includes 284 former or incumbent MPs who had defaulted to the tune of Rs2.57 million up to February this year. Their telephone connections were suspended due to non-payment of dues. Second NTC list claims that 449 former ministers and legislators also owe outstanding arrears of Rs9.56 million. Unfathomed sadness is that the rich get away with public money more often than not and digest it with an ease that a common man even cannot think of. The reported default of the MPs stands around Rs 12.13 million. People like Dr Nadeem Ehsan, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, Faisal Karim Kundi, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Bushra Rehman, Anwar Alam Khan, Makhdoom Amin Fahim, Mian Manzoor Wattoo, Firdous Ashiq Awan, Faiz Taman, Samina Khalid Ghurki, Rana Muhammad Ishaq, Ali Nawaz Mehr, Ms Tahira Lateef, Zulfiqar Gondal, Aftab Sherpao, Mohabbat Khan Marri, Yaqoob Nasir and Jaleel Ahmad, who had been named in the list, pay off this amount with a fit of fingers to come clean before the Returning Officers. The Constitution under Article 63 bars all those who failed to clear arrears within six months or they carry a default of Rs 10,000.

The most of the defaulters of utility bills, banks and other financial institutions, aspiring to contest the next election, will soon deposit their arrears -indeed it is not a big issue. Will it change the mindset of big ones who care the least for paying their outstanding dues to the organizations that they deal with in term of their finances, the answer is yes if the relevant authorities exercise their powers independently without taking the outside influence into account. Once a highly influential defaulter like former Prime Minister Raja Peraiz Ashraf, who is facing a looming disqualification in the wake of the Capital Development Authority’s default since 1994, is punished and barred from future assignments by the apex court. Such punishment will help purge the dirty mindset prevailing amongst the rich and influential politicians.
As every Pakistani believes that the corruption is, indeed, going on in the country unabated but the record of the recovery of the funding extended to the poor does not substantiate the statement rather to the total surprise of many, over 90 per cent of the poor are neat and clean in dealing with their financial institutions or in paying their utility bills.

It is only the rich and influential people who run amok with the money they owe. The Election Commission of Pakistan, having complete support of the people and institutions that matter the most, must come down hard on the defaulters irrespective of their political affiliation and their stature and esteem. Such an act will lay foundation for clean politics in the future political setup.

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