Daily Times

The declaration of assets by parliamentarians provides a study in contrasts between their lifestyles and ‘modest’ millions. The increase of an incredible amount in the assets of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and many other parliamentarians proved a shock this time. A perusal of these declarations shows that these assets are owned either in their own name or those of their wives. Every parliamentarian is bound to declare annually his/her assets to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). However, the question arises what is the point of filing these when there appears to be no one responsible for checking the veracity of these declarations. The ECP is only responsible for receiving the assets declarations of the parliamentarians as they are provided. This law was made for the abolition of corruption so that after being elected, the representatives of the people could be held accountable if they had accumulated unexplained wealth. But since there is no checking of the parliamentarians’ declarations, the whole procedure seems like an exercise in futility.

Nothing should be secret about the lives of our leaders and prominent figures whom we elect to represent us. The people have a right to know about their wealth and whether any changes in their fortunes are legitimate or owe something to the perks, privileges and opportunities for self-aggrandizement that public office in our country seems to offer. After all, are we not painfully aware of the plethora of scandals over the years concerning people in power or positions of authority using public office for private gain? The history of our all too brief trysts with democracy bears witness to this unfortunate fact. The perception that public office is merely a revolving door for making hay while the sun shines, a far cry from what public service is supposed to mean, continues to trouble the electorate and weaken its belief and confidence in democracy being the best system for the country. Each penny extracted from the public trust is a penny less for the welfare of the people, a fundamental founding principle of the state. In Pakistan’s faulty system of registering assets and wealth, it is difficult if not impossible to follow the audit trail of money the owner wants to keep from public view. But elected representatives have to be held to a higher standard than the ordinary citizen. Their character and conduct in office can either set a positive example or plunge society into the depths of the slime of corruption that afflicts this country. While the elected representatives are expected to live up to these standards, too much reliance should not perhaps be placed on their honesty. A system of checking/auditing the assets declarations should be instituted to weed out the corrupt ones. *