President Pervez Musharraf’s nod finally led to the appointment of Kamil Ali Agha as the Leader of the Opposition in the Senate by the Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q).
"The decision was taken at an undeclared meeting of top PML-Q leaders with the president four days back," a senior party stalwart, who attended the unreported session, told The News. Among others present at the deliberations were PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Mohammad Ali Durrani, Wasim Sajjad, Lt-Gen (retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi, Anwar Bhinder and Kamil Ali Agha.
The only qualification, if it can be so called, that earned Agha the prestigious nomination was that he was an "aggressive" and "attacking" person, who would do well for the party in this position, the PML-Q leader said.
Others considered in the meeting for the office were found too docile and independent minded, who would not be belligerent in the new parliamentary arrangement when the PML-Q was on the defensive in the Senate as well as the National Assembly.
Wasim Sajjad, who had been the longest-serving chairman of the Senate and who was the leader of the house for five years (2002-2007), was not found fit for the job because he had no experience of working in the opposition since his entry in the upper house of parliament way back in 1985.
PML-Q Secretary General Mushahid Hussain was also considered for the slot, but was not approved because he was found much independent minded, having a track record of saying what was right and what was wrong regardless of what Musharraf or the PML-Q felt.
The name of the third man, elderly Anwar Bhinder, also cropped up, but was abandoned because of his age although his parliamentary experience surpassed all others. He too had never been exceedingly partisan.
After the PML-Q’s announcement of Agha as the Leader of the Opposition, several senators expressed reservations over his nomination and stood with the other three hopefuls, the PML-Q leader said.
"If we continue to take dictation from the president, our decisions would remain apolitical, resulting in disasters. We have already suffered a lot of disgrace and shame because of the non-political approach."
With the death of Sarwar Kakar, the PML-Q has been left with thirty-eight senators. After the formation of the six-member ‘forward bloc’ that also includes the one-time favourite of Musharraf, Nilofer Bakhtiar, the party now has thirty-two members in the upper house.
A number of them are waiting in the wings to fly to the ranks of the PML-Nawaz and PPP. This would further deplete the PML-Qís strength.When Muhammadmian Soomro was re-elected as chairman in March 2006 for the second three-year term, he had secured 56 votes in the 100-member Senate. Independents and tribal senators have already said goodbye to the PML-Q and now stand with the ruling coalition.
The PML-Q leader said that Agha’s appointment as the leader of the opposition was manoeuvred by Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi who, he said, had briefed the president prior to the crucial meeting that he was the best man in the given situation. Musharraf had endorsed their recommendation.
Agha was an unknown advocate till he made his debut in the parliamentary politics after he had won a Lahore seat of the National Assembly on the PML-N ticket in 1997 general elections. He was as loyal to the Sharif brothers as he has been to the Chaudhrys. However, during the Sharifs’ rule, he was nowhere near the limelight. During the Chaudhrys’ rule, he emerged as an important PML-Q leader and their mouthpiece, particularly after he was made a minister.