Adil Najam
UPDATE: The picture on the left, published in Daily Times, comes with the caption:
“Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri, PML-Q President Shujaat Hussain and MNAs react to an announcement by the Election Commissioner (unseen), at Parliament on Saturday. President Pervez Musharraf won a landslide victory in the election but the official results will be declared after the Supreme Court verdict on his eligibility.“
Maybe our readers can suggest what some of the people here are thinking as they clap. Suggestively, some, you will note, are making too much of an effort to clap, and others too little! The picture is also a good compliment to an earlier one we had posted here.
ORIGINAL POST: It is neither a surprise nor really news that Gen. Musharraf just got himself elected. It was always clear that he would get himself elected by hook or crook; eventually it took a bit of both. The way it had to be done is sad - pathetic really - and no one has come out of this mess looking good. Gen. Musharraf got the votes he needed, but neither he nor anyone else is a winner.
Gen. Musharraf lost whatever little credibility he might have had as someone interested in Pakistan’s development or people’s aspirations. He also lost the ability to make the claim that he was any different or any less p
ower-hungry than his political predecessors. He is now, clearly, one of them and has lost the one thing that had given him a support base. Benazir Bhutto lost the principles her party and father might once have stood for. PML(Q) had little to loose and yet lost big, they may even loose the government. Nawaz Sharif had already lost out some weeks ago. Maulana Fazlur Rehman had already lost all credibility but now they can’t even pretend to have any left. The Supreme Court lost at least some of the public goodwill they had gained as an institution with last minute shenanigans. America lost too because instead of backing one bad bet (Musharraf) they are now backing two (Musharraf + Benazir Bhutto).
But the biggest loser here may be the people of Pakistan who - once again - lost big time. But, then, I guess we are used to it.
Frankly, there is little need or point in commenting on the sham elections today. This was not a news event, this was a scripted stage drama. The real question remains what will happen next. There, it seems, that all of the losers - including Gen. Musharraf - may be confronted with some unexpected turn of events. There, one continues to hope, the people of Pakistan may yet emerge as winners eventually. Whenever ‘eventually’ comes!
Pejamistri, keep writing. Your posts are always a great read!
Amidst the current chaos, the situation is ripe for a new political force to emerge, The only opposition to the rape of Pakistan the last few months has come from the legal fraternity. It is high time that Muneer Malik, Kurd , Aitzaz, Tariq Mahmood, Wajihuddin sahib form a new political party and participate in the 2008 election.
It will be a long struggle though, as stated by Mr Wajihuddin himself.
In other news, Naseerullah Babar has shown the middle finger to BB. He has quit PPP:
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id =10511
The real problem in Pakistan is the lack of alternate leadership to replace the tried leaders. Take Mushy out of the equation today and what do you have left? Mian or Mai! The “religious” parties are in shambles and their members are busy pulling each other’s beards. All other parties lack the leadership or a manifesto that appeals to the entire country.
The election of Mushy although shameful, still brings in some hope of stability for Pakistan. Those who think that we should give democracy a chance should remember that our democratic leaders have an unbelievable ability to destroy the country within months of their rise to power. Give them a couple of decades and you may not even have a country left for democracy.
The solution is to give our people an alternate leadership that has the ability to fix the root cause of the failure of democracy in our country. Until then, thank God for every bit of stability that comes our way whether wearing a Khaki uniform or a black sherwani. Look at all the mouths cursing the “doctrine of necessity” and you will see them attached to the same faces who have over the years gained power through the support of that very doctrine. People who lined up behind Bhutto during his Martial Law, people who sat in Zia’s Majlis-e-Shura, people who ran provincial governments during Zia’s Marshal Law and people who passed 17th amendment all did so under the “doctrine of necessity” but when it goes against them, the same chickens hatched from the rotten eggs of dictators become the guardians of democracy.
I say again, find a fresh platform and get rid of these politicians. If we don’t then the hand knotted silk carpet in the presidency with feel the weight of military boots from time to time.
Social Mistri,
You must have been sleeping throughout Musharraf hijacking the Pakistani government, securing his own position and interests, attacking the media and those who oppose him and changing the constitution to fit his needs only. If you feel this is something to be optimistic about, then you must enjoy living in a dictatorship. The rest of us Pakistanis don’t. if there’s a time to be tense about, it’s now. If there’s a time to rebel about something, it’s now. We have to get the media to practice freedom of speech. It has said nothing but facts relating to Musharrif’s regime, but even the facts themselves are not in his favour - therefore the media is shut down for sometime and censored constantly.
Razia says:
They can’t have it both ways.
Yet Musharraf can, for 9 years, live according to his wishes in two postitions (in the army) and as the president - even if the Constitution doesn’t support it? When has the opposition ever fallen to the level of Musharraf’s crimes? Are you blind to the fact that we Pakistanis have no freedom of speech, freedom of movement and freedom of expression in any way that is not to the liking of the government?
I fail to understand why anyone but political parties joined with Musharraf would support him. All he can claim is the economic “progress” from which only those he knows, the elite and the politicians who support him in turn, have benefited. The rest of the Pakistani population has suffered.
Not everybody lost.
The HALWAIES made a roaring business and so did the Fireworks people.
All Those who ate the MITHAEE won.
Diabetes Zindabad.
I am happy Musharraf won! He may not be perfect but he is much better than the opposition. I believe he cares for Pakistan much more than any in the opposition. It is unfortunate that he had to make a deal with BB.
He made a mistake in trying to dismiss the CJ. The judiciary council reinstated the CJ. Musharraf accepted the verdict. The supreme court decided he can run for president in uniform. Why couldn’t the opposition accept the verdict, stay in the assembly, vote against him and defeat him?
They can’t have it both ways.
From personal experience I can say that the performance of the the government has been very impressive, at least of the consulate offices in the United States. Last year, on two occasions the delivery of service was better than promised, unlike in the past pre-Musharraf era.
The economic progress is well recognized by international financial institutions.
The author writes:
“The real question remains what will happen next. There, it seems, that all of the losers - including Gen. Musharraf - may be confronted with some unexpected turn of events”.
Hope springs eternal.
dil ke bahelAnE ko GhAlib yeh KhayAl aCHA hae
Adil, you really hit the nail on the head - the biggest losers of today’s sham elections are the people of Pakistan.
What will happen next? To my mind, the country will sink into a deeper chaos. Musharraf has introduced too many players but hasn’t been able to provide a clear-cut orientation vis-à-vis issues related to governance. His leadership or lack of it, as for that matter, has jeopardized the interests of the public-at-large.
When the not-too-honest folks like Benazir and Altaf Hussein are pardoned along with thousands of other ‘mentionable’ crooks, there is something terribly wrong somewhere. How this wrong can be righted depends, firstly, on the people of Pakistan themselves. It is probably time to seize the opportunity and rise against the powers-that-be. The people have got to break the monotony of this circus where moral and political corruption is rampantly destroying the very fabric of the society.
Secondly, I see some hope in the evolving judicial activism. Unless the ISI has a few Supreme Court judges in its pocket, I, for one, am confident that justice will eventually prevail. I see Musharraf and his chamchas getting fed up and frustrated with this activism and reacting sooner rather than later.
Furthermore, my faith in the media has grown manifold over the last couple of years or so. I understand that media still, more or less, remains subservient to the government of the day, yet, the process of ‘diversification’ and discussion and dialogue have encouraged the media to hold those in power to be accountable and hence check their nefarious activities.
Musharraf has basically lost his creditability amongst the people. Today, although he’s not lonely, but he stands alone in the crowd of faces that only are interested in getting their share in power. It’ll be indeed a monstrous task to work on regaining the goodwill. One is truly skeptical if that’ll ever happen.
What needs consistency, however, is the country’s foreign policy. Pakistan has benefited greatly by virtue of its support in the war on terrorism. Musharraf’s hypocrisy apart, the US , it is hoped, will keep patronizing Pakistan. The word on the street in Washington is that whereas there isn’t much concern about who rules the country, what actually matters is the war on terrorism. Washington is fine with anyone who talks in terms of deliverables.
Also, domestically, despite his somewhat embarrassing entry and exit last month, Nawaz Sharif may turn out to be the biggest beneficiary out of this anarchy. Clueless as he is sitting in Saudi Arabia, one understands the amount of anxiety and stress he must be facing these days, yet, all of what is happening now and what will happen in the proceeding months will turn the tide in his favor. Needless to say, he’s another crook!
Long story short, Pakistan needs a fresh crop of leadership. What’s sad about all this is the absence of new faces, an emerging leadership that can present the people of Pakistan other/better options and alternatives. One wishes the people of Pakistan all the best!
Delhi ta Palam,
Sultanat-e-Shah Alam
Although I have supported Pervez Musharraf all these years , I think it is about time he had the insight to relaise that it is time to quit.
It is quite sad that whilst the rest of the world has indicted and convicted Benazir Bhutto for her corruption and even her secret Swiss bank accounts have been seized by Interpol, Pervez Musharraf is busy signing “forgiveness” and “reconciliation” orders for her !