Courts to the rescue (POL Prices)
Friday, May 15, 2009
Editorial, The News International, Pakistan
Friday, May 15, 2009
The orders from a three-member Supreme Court bench to the government to lower PoL prices within a week are obviously good news for the public. In delivering its verdict the court noted that the government was 'fleecing' its own people. A high-powered commission had been investigating the manner in which oil prices are fixed and had submitted its findings. But while considering the verdict, we must ask if this is indeed an area in which the court should at all intervene. The devising of economic policy is after all a concern for the executive; one must ask if the judicial intervention will again blur the lines between institutions of state and add to the considerable confusion we already face in this regard. The SC has indeed acted with great wisdom by pulling itself out of the political process and putting an end to the practice of judges accepting posts as acting governors or in other similar capacities. By venturing in to politics through its latest verdict, no matter how good the intention may be, it risks undoing some of the good work. The fact is that many matters other than margins of profit and so on come into play when making decisions at the macro level. At present, whether or not we like it, we have to live with the IMF's tough conditionalities.
This having been said, the SC ruling and its observations have drawn attention also to another factor. We need governments to act ethically and wisely; to put the needs of people first. This is especially true when the government belongs to a party that won elections on the basis of a promise to meet the needs of people. While we hear much talk of the need to strengthen democracy, the fact is this can happen only if the government wins support from its own people and gain their trust. It has so far failed to do so. The SC has pointed towards a route it can take to help build strength. Indeed the government has already lost an important opportunity. It is now the court which will be given credit in the minds of people for any cutback in PoL prices. For the future, there is a lesson in this for government.
Friday, May 15, 2009
The orders from a three-member Supreme Court bench to the government to lower PoL prices within a week are obviously good news for the public. In delivering its verdict the court noted that the government was 'fleecing' its own people. A high-powered commission had been investigating the manner in which oil prices are fixed and had submitted its findings. But while considering the verdict, we must ask if this is indeed an area in which the court should at all intervene. The devising of economic policy is after all a concern for the executive; one must ask if the judicial intervention will again blur the lines between institutions of state and add to the considerable confusion we already face in this regard. The SC has indeed acted with great wisdom by pulling itself out of the political process and putting an end to the practice of judges accepting posts as acting governors or in other similar capacities. By venturing in to politics through its latest verdict, no matter how good the intention may be, it risks undoing some of the good work. The fact is that many matters other than margins of profit and so on come into play when making decisions at the macro level. At present, whether or not we like it, we have to live with the IMF's tough conditionalities.
This having been said, the SC ruling and its observations have drawn attention also to another factor. We need governments to act ethically and wisely; to put the needs of people first. This is especially true when the government belongs to a party that won elections on the basis of a promise to meet the needs of people. While we hear much talk of the need to strengthen democracy, the fact is this can happen only if the government wins support from its own people and gain their trust. It has so far failed to do so. The SC has pointed towards a route it can take to help build strength. Indeed the government has already lost an important opportunity. It is now the court which will be given credit in the minds of people for any cutback in PoL prices. For the future, there is a lesson in this for government.
Labels: Judiciary, Pakistan, POL Prices
posted @ 11:35 AM,
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