In Messy Pakistan Politics, Imran is the Only Hope for Alternate Leadership
By SalahuddinHaider
Karachi, Pakistan
A topic like this, bitter but true, simultaneously terse and curt, is bound to generate a painful debate, which some will like, others, quite naturally, will resent. But reality has to be unmasked. Curtain needs to be lifted. The sooner it is done, the better it will be for posterity.
Pakistan politics is messy, but so it is in half the countries of the world. No point regretting or being ashamed of. The Arab world is authoritarian. Rulers, Kings, Ameers, and Sheikhs, have defied history to bring back the era of Royalty which Mustafa Kamal in Turkey had demolished a long time ago.
Likewise, definition of democracy differs from region to region and from country to country. The Muslim world, unfortunately, has remained deprived of its fruits. Luckily, Pakistan, Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, Bangladesh do not fall in the contemptuous category. Britain, treated as the mother of all democracies, and its parliament enjoying a parental status, remains a shining example for others. America, India, States in Western Europe, Japan, Republic of Korea, can be cited as examples of countries pursuing rule of law, set norms and decency. But these countries too have flaws in their system. British democracy, nearly 800 years old, has not only survived shocks from time to time, but today is cited as the best democratic system of the world.
In Pakistan, repeated military rules disfigured the very face of democracy, and although efforts had been made during the brief interludes of military and civilian rules to put the system back on track, a real democracy remains a far-fetched dream in our dear country also. Parliament seldom, or hardly gets the importance it deserves. The Prime Minister remains absent most of the time, and ministers shirk their responsibilities to quench the hunger for answers to problems of those elected by the people from different constituencies of national or provincial assemblies.
Speaker AyazSadiq, instead of maintaining neutrality of office, takes pride in being the member of a political party. Precedents are many where presiding officers of the lower or the upper chambers of the parliament have surrendered their party membership to be bi-partisan. Late President Farooq Laghari is one of them. Senate chairman Raza Rabbani, too, has retained links with the PPP, but the way he conducts the proceedings, leaves no doubt of his being neutral to the opposition and treasury benchers.
Against such a backdrop, where parliament has left much to be desired, boycott of assembly or joint sessions of the parliament, does not matter much to the people. The common man is clearly disillusioned with the performance of the people they elected to represent them at national or provincial levels. In a country stung by hunger, poverty, squalor, and unemployment, emphasis on perks, privileges, higher salaries and allowances for the parliamentarians has sadly gained priority.
In Saudi Arabiadeclining oil prices have forced the administration to cut down the salary of ministers and officers, reduce expenditure on administration, and generate more revenue. Visa fee, even for Umra and pilgrimage, has been raised sky high for repeat visits to the Holy Land. Nothing of the sort is happening in Pakistan, a country living on loans and on borrowed money. The IMF door is shut, but the World and the Asian Development Banks remain the main pillars of State financing. That is no economy. Whatever is happening in Pakistan, is actually day-to day-living. Long-term, or perspective planning, has been completely missing, which is unfortunate, and will be harmful in the long run.
Coming back to Imran Khan, one is forced to admit that despite immature decisions and political blunders, he has not only survived but has forged ahead in his crusade against corruption. Sheer perseverance perhaps has been his principal asset and he remains a potent threat to the ruling elite, both PML(N) and its allies. The PPP unfortunately has fallen in line with the prime minister, but neither Bilawal nor Khursheed Shah will be able to salvage the ship, if and when it begins to sink.
Bilawal is still immature and Khursheed Shah has his own style of politics to pursue. Imran has been untiringly going from city to city, town to town, and village to village to campaign against Nawaz Sharif. The government’s spin doctors --- a trio, not necessarily to be named--- continue to harp on their tunes, but have failed to evoke public sympathy in their favor.
Imran, accused of ignoring the rest of the opposition who were his allies, and preferring a solo flight, has achieved his goal to a great extent. Awareness has been created because of his unceasing efforts that the country has to follow set norms in politics—politics which is clean, and capable of delivering.
His protest meeting at Raiwind was a huge success—a massive one - and must be accepted ungrudgingly. The crowd responding to his appeal from all over the country, was a record one. He asked the prime minister to either resign or appear before the Panama Leaks enquiry.
In case this is not done, and if his call went unheeded, he would surround Islamabad and seal it off to paralyze the government. Pessimism has been expressed of its success, but the PTI chief has demonstrated that he could be a real challenge to the government, and has time and again, been a pain in the neck of those at the helm.
Opinions may vary as to whether closing down the country’s capital would be a wise step, but then the government too should take measures to resolve the problem. Yet another powerful argument being advanced now in private discussions is whether Imran enjoys secret backing. Whether some hidden hands have been behind him. That is not known. But Imran has been on toes, and history teaches us that those pursuing their goals unrelentingly, have invariably been successful.
Time seems to be on the side of Imran Khan, and if he does not commit any more blunder in politics, he may well be on target. He is readying himself to be the alternate leadership for the country. That is a good omen.
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