“THE desire for a post-retirement job influences pre-retirement judgements.” These words of caution came from Arun Jaitley, one of India’s tallest political figures, in a debate in India’s parliament on Sept 5, 2013. When Mr Jaitley spoke, he hadn’t the faintest idea that his words, which were referred to the Indian judiciary, would apply to Pakistan’s caretaker governments too.

Created as a creature of the Constitution and meant to ensure transparency, neutrality and a level playing field for all political parties taking part in general elections, Pakistan’s caretaker set-ups have more often than not become fertile grounds for ambitious individuals inducted into these governments to advertise their capability and loyalties to the perceived victors in expectation of a quid pro quo.

In theory, per Section 230 of the Elections Act, 2017, caretaker governments are intended to be nothing more than seat warmers, and composed of individuals who undertake day-to-day governance responsibilities before the elected representatives of the people of Pakistan take over. As part of their responsibilities, they are supposed to be “impartial to every person and political party”. To drive home this point, the Constitution through Article 224(1B) prohibits members of the caretaker cabinets, including the prime minister and the chief ministers and their spouses and children, from contesting in the elections to “such Assemblies”, which immediately follow.

The term “such Assemblies” was likely used by the drafters of the Constitution to lay stress on the expected impartiality of caretakers and to include within its ambit all provincial assemblies and the National Assembly to which elections would be held. Yet, in practice, the word “Assem­blies” has been taken literally and all other facets of the political landscape have been deemed fertile ground for members of the caretaker cabinets to occupy, post-election, as a result of which caretaker ministers have considered political appointments for themselves as fair game.

Our recent history is peppered with instances of caretaker ministers being awarded lucrative positions post-caretaker government. For instance, the caretaker chief ministers of Punjab in the 2013 general elections and the 2023 national polls were both made chairmen of the Pakistan Cricket Board. The first one was appointed immediately after the election. The latter was appointed just a couple of days before the Feb 8 poll, and was, post-election, made the federal interior minister, on top of now being set to contest the upcoming Senate polls.

Our recent history is peppered with instances of caretaker ministers being awarded lucrative positions post-caretaker government.

In 2013, the caretaker federal water and power minister joined the governing party after the elections and was made a spokesperson to the prime minister, and at a later date a senator. Similarly, the federal interior minister in the recent caretaker government resigned prior to the issuance of the 2024 election schedule. He now heads Pakistan’s largest province as its chief minister. Meanwhile, the sports minister in the caretaker government of Balochistan now sits as an elected member of the National Assembly, having adopted the same route as the chief minister of Balochistan. To top it off, even the prime minister of the recent caretaker government finds himself in the running for the Senate elections and potentially stands a chance of becoming chairman of the Upper House.

While some would argue that there is nothing wrong in elected governments identifying capable individuals and offering them jobs they feel are suitable for them on the basis of past performance — even if they had been caretaker ministers — there exists a very real sense that such nominations and appointments are nothing but loyalty bonuses awarded to certain caretaker ministers for their efforts to aid the cause of a particular government coming to power in the first place.

The then outgoing caretaker dispensations in Punjab and the federation, both of which stayed on for longer than what the Constitution mandated, were subjected to some of the fiercest criticism during and after the completion of their reign. Yet, some of the most influential members of these governments are now either playing an integral role or are angling for one in the current political set-up. What is particularly disturbing is that some of them are aiming to become senators through the votes of the same assemblies they headed as caretakers not too long ago.

The fact that though they were prohibited from directly contesting the elections, they were allowed to indirectly benefit from the exercise they helped administer makes a mockery of the very purpose of caretaker governments. This not only paints the electoral process, which is meant to be fair, in a bad light, but also reinforces the partiality that the Constitution and the Elections Act had intended to remove.

There is a need to revisit the entire concept of caretaker dispensations in Pakistan. The concept has been reduced to a five-yearly lottery where individuals otherwise incapable of holding the reins — due to their being political novices — get to wield power in the run-up to the polls. Once the elections are over, the same individuals use their tenure in the caretaker set-up as a job application for a more permanent, lucrative stint in the elected government whose ascent they had allegedly facilitated.

The country cannot afford to install at the helm, even for an interim period, individuals who are looking to curry favour with the powers that be while undertaking their constitutional duties. In Pakistan’s case, it is clear that the desire for a post-caretaker cabinet job has influenced the discharge of caretaker duties. In the final analysis, Pakistan is a democracy, a country meant to be ruled by those who embody the will of the people and no one else.

The writer is a lawyer.

X: @sheheryarzaidi

Published in Dawn, March 23rd, 2024