To ensure the continuity of the recently unveiled economic plan and to speed up the process aimed at receiving foreign investment in state-owned entities, the government in ISLAMABAD was considering amending the Elections Act of 2017 to give the upcoming caretaker set-up authority beyond its constitutional mandate.
As part of a larger plan to ensure the implementation of the economic plans, PML-N sources told The Express Tribune that they were considering presenting the name of Ishaq Dar as the caretaker prime minister. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), one of the two main coalition partners, will be consulted next week before a final decision is made on Dar’s candidacy.
According to PML-N sources, the government is thinking of changing Section 230 of the Elections Act 2017, which would give the caretaker set-up more authority to make economic choices. They mentioned that the National Assembly may see the proposed elections law changes as early as next week. With these changes, the caretaker government would have the authority to resuscitate the economy.
According to Section 230, a caretaker (interim) government’s duties are limited to those absolutely necessary for the functioning of government on a day-to-day basis. Assisting the Election Commission of Pakistan in conducting lawful general elections, it will only take actions that are both normal and noncontroversial, are in the public interest, and are reversible by a democratically elected administration.
Existing legislation also prevents the caretaker administration from making significant policy choices, with the exception of unforeseen emergencies. It is prohibited from entering into any major international discussion with any foreign country or international agency, signing or ratifying any international binding document, or entering into any substantial domestic contract or undertaking if doing so would be contrary to the public interest.
According to the sources, the proposal was to change both subsections of Section 230 that address the authority granted to the temporary structure.
When asked for their thoughts on the proposed changes to the elections legislation, neither Azam Nazir Tarar, the minister of law, nor Marriyum Aurangzeb, the minister of information, reacted.
In an effort to get the economy back on track and replace foreign loans with foreign investment and receipts from the sale of state assets, the civil and military leadership have recently revealed a slew of initiatives.
The government established the Special Investment Facilitation Council in June, with a civil-military leadership structure. On Friday, the council’s top committee met for the second time to approve potential farm investment projects to present to Saudi Arabia.
Similarly, the outgoing administration of Pakistan is finishing up the legislative process necessary to establish the Pakistan Sovereign Wealth Fund. A bill to establish the fund might be introduced in the National Assembly as soon as next week. With input from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) of the United Arab Emirates, a draft of the bill has been drafted.
Seven companies, according to government sources, may be moved into the new sovereign wealth fund at the outset. The total asset value is Rs2.3 trillion.
Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL), National Bank of Pakistan (NBP), Pakistan Development Fund (PDF), Government Holdings Private Limited (GHPL), Mari Petroleum Company Limited (MPC), and Neelum-Jhelum Hydro Power Company Limited (NJHPC) are some of the companies the government has chosen to be included in the fund.
The United Arab Emirates has previously expressed an intention to invest in Pakistan’s oil and gas industries. The government may sell off a portion of the assets today.
The government is currently in the process of selling Abu Dhabi Ports 85% of East Wharf at Karachi Port. As part of this effort, the UAE government is pressuring the Ministry of Commerce to sign a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Act (CEPA) before the conclusion of the current term.
A senior cabinet member, speaking on the condition of anonymity, stated that the issues facing Pakistan’s economy cannot be left for three months on merely day-to-day decision making.
He went on to say that the caretaker administration needed more authority to make economic choices in order to keep the IMF program on track and finish the second review in November.
When the interim government in July 2018 sought to enter into program negotiations with the IMF, the law minister at the time vehemently objected on the grounds that the caretaker government lacked the authority to do so.
According to the sources, keeping the same economic team in place is essential for carrying out all of the initiatives. They claimed this was why PML-N leaders pushed for Finance Minister Ishaq Dar to be named interim prime minister.
In that event, Tariq Bajwa may remain in his current role as special assistant to the PM on finances.
However, the deal couldn’t go through without the support of the Pakistan Peoples Party. Ishaq Dar’s political leanings could also be a point of contention. If Dar becomes interim PM, the current political dispensation might not return with him as finance minister in the next government.
The name of former finance minister Hafeez Shaikh has also been floated as a possible caretaker prime minister.
