A new political party needed By Sayeed Hasan Khan and Kurt Jacobsen

What good will one more party do? While Saeed and Kurt's thinking is right their analysis is a tad off key. What is need in the country - both in the administration and in Pakistani political parties is transparency and accountability.

With four out five Pakistani angootha chaap Transparency come first.

Transparency should cover all the functions of a political party - from documented paid membership lists, donations and funding received, audited expenses, and regular yearly elections under a neutral and independent Election Commission.

If a political party does not follow these, it should be declared ineligible to participate in any election. If a political party's internal workings are documented and transparent, then in due course of time a better qualified and accountable leadership would emerge.

There is a plethora of existing laws that can be amalgamated under a Political Parties Act, 2008.

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Now an excerpt from A new political party needed By Sayeed Hasan Khan and Kurt Jacobsen:

Pakistan needs a new political party that is unwaveringly committed to social democratic goals, prodding other parties in the same direction so that their populist promises become more than words. They should form a progressive party that attends to housing, sanitation, health and education first, which is the best possible way of tamping down any attraction that terrorist activities otherwise might exert. Such a vigorous new party won’t be tied into old boys’ networks. It will be free from the old agenda. And it can be an unhampered critical voice. How long must one continue this sad merry-go-round of venal politicians followed by arbitrary generals followed by more clueless politicians — and always with the same results?