Adil Najam
The News is now confirmed. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has been named the new Chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party. His father, Benazir’s husband, Asif Ali Zardari will be the co-Chairman.
Seemingly credible reports suggest that Bilawal Zardari, Benazir Bhutto’s 19-year old son, now a student at Oxford University, is being considered as the new PPP Chairperson to succeed his mother - and before that his grandmother and grandfather. Later today he will read out a testament from Benazir Bhutto outlining the future of the party.
Repeating what is now being widely reported, but in more detail, a report from Christina Lamb and Dean Nelson of The Times (London) details:
BENAZIR BHUTTO’S 19-year-old son Bilawal will be thrust into a dangerous spotlight today as Pakistan’s most powerful political dynasty prepares to pass the baton to the next generation. Bilawal, a first-year undergraduate at Oxford University, is the heir to a blood-soaked legacy. He lost his mother to an assassin on Thursday; his uncles both died in suspicious circumstances; and his grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was hanged in 1979 after being deposed from power….
At 3pm today Pakistan time Bilawal will read out his dead mother’s political testament to leaders of the Pakistan People’s party (PPP), which his grandfather founded and the family has always controlled. “They have to show his face to reassure the party that there will be another Bhutto leader in the future,” a diplomat said. Bilawal is expected to play a leading role in the campaign for elections, still scheduled for January 8 despite the riots that have followed the assassination. But he will return to his studies at Christ Church early next year. Under Pakistani law, parliamentary candidates must be at least 25 years old.
Benazir Bhutto wanted Bilawal to complete his education before becoming involved in politics. Although she would have liked him to lead the party, she did not want him to feel compelled to do so or to make the kind of sacrifices that she had to make when her father was executed. Her widowed husband, Asif Ali Zardari, will make a bid today to lead the PPP in order to keep power firmly in the hands of the Bhutto family and to ensure that Bilawal can eventually inherit his mother’s political mantle.
Party leaders grieving for her began discussing the succession last night. The talks took place in Bhutto’s ancestral home at Garhi Khuda Bakhsh, where she was buried on Friday in the mausoleum that she built for her late father. Early this morning 10 villagers were keeping vigil by her grave, reciting the Koran. There were two fresh wreaths from the new army chief General Ashfaq Kayani.
…The prospect of Zardari returning to frontline politics has horrified several members of the PPP central executive, who blame him for embroiling Bhutto’s two short-lived governments in corruption allegations. Zardari became known as Mr Ten Per Cent because of widespread allegations that he received kickbacks on government contracts. Many in the party would prefer to see the PPP taken over by Makhdoom Amin Fahim, head of another feudal family, who ran the party while Bhutto was in exile.
If, indeed, he becomes the Chairman - now or in the near future, nominally or actually - the Bhutto family legacy will continue. While the last name changes - as it did in India when Jawaharlal Nehru’s daughter Indira Gandhi took over - the reins of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) will remain in the Bhutto clan.
I must confess that my own immediate feelings on this are rather mixed.
I do not think this is a burden (given the weight of the responsibilities or the dangers) to be thrust on one so young. I have never met Bilawal but hear from those who have that he is an impressive young man. I have no doubts that he is but it is neither fair on him nor the party nor the cause of democracy for this to happen at this moment or in this way. More that that, I wish (even though I know it was unlikely) that the Party would open up its leadership and internal democracy process. Also, there is the fear that if he is anointed many will try to manipulate him and he will be turned into a “puppet prince.” I do hope that none of this will happen.
If indeed a role is thrust upon him, even as a figure head whose appointment is meant to hold the party together, this is clearly a big responsibility. It is probably something that he probably anticipated in his future. His mother clearly did. But probably not as soon as this and certainly not in these tragic circumstances.
Whatever happens in the next hours I wish young Bilawal the best. This must be an immensely trying time for him. Whatever happens, I hope and wish and pray that even if he comes to this position because some consider it to be his ‘ancestaral right’ that he will think always of what is good for Pakistan. That he will remember that this is not a privilidge but also a responsibility. There are, of coruse, grave dangers that come with the mantle that some might want him to take on. And I pray earnestly that his fate will not be that of his mother and grandfather.
Finally, no matter what is decided, I pray that he will be guided by the purity, optimism and ideals of youth and not by the self-serving interests of those many who will flood to ‘advise’ him. Leadership is to be judged not only by what leaders do but by who advise they seek and listen to.
My advise to him - not that he asked - is that he should listen always to his heart and mind, well before he listens to anyone around him. Let him be guided by his own idealism, rather than the political ‘pragmatism’ of those who will soon (if they have not already) surround him. Let him follow that which was best in Benazir Bhutto and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and avoid their follies.
I wish Bilawal well. But I will wait on my judgement of him, as will history.
[NOTE TO READERS: We had earlier posted a story suggesting that Bilawal Zardari had already been confirmed as the new PPP Chairperson. Realizing that at that point it had not been confirmed, we then took this post off and replaced it with a note of apology saying that this news was not yet confirmed. Given that Bilawal Bhutto as PPP Chairperson was clearly a possibility (either immediately or in the near future) and that a number of still-relevant comments had been made, we then merged the two posts (including relevant comments) but with appropriate changes in the original post to reflect the fact that as of this writing this was a ‘likelihood’ and not a confirmation. It now turns out that our original sources were correct and Bilawal has been named Chairman.]
mohatarma was the best leader of the world
KAl Bhi Bhutto ZInda tha… aJj bhi Bhutto ZInda haI…
benAzir Bhutto.. zIndaBad……
Jan tak sooraj chand rahe ga..Bhutto terA naaM rAHe ga….
would you like to tell me about the Sapel Bandi a village name nearest to sawat Pakistan . My best friend is living there. His name is johan Pervaiz . We used to live in Peshawar with Mushtaiq Muneer and khan Jee. Khan Jee was attached PIA. He belongs to Mardan . Now I have lost all his contact number or address. Any person who knows the Sapal Bandi Village or Johan Pervaiz , Please provide email , cell no, contact no to the following email address.
1. ansarkazmi@yahoo.com 2. kazmi_rto@Yahoo.com
Meengla jee,
18 paras of “Bonnet blanc, blanc Bonnet”
@precedent comment too long and lethargic
towards the grundnorms of “prescribed” priciples
of universal democratic values, soit minimum atleast,
‘decidedness not undecidedness’ ?
today 10th Achoura, just heard eyeopening
Shame-e-Gharban by Talib Jauheri, so poignant, could’nt
hold my emotions, reminded me Rashid Turabi from
whom I heard 17 years his philosophy on the subject of
“choice between Haq and Batil”
I was trying to find one or two paras of this enormous
article mentionning this ” farqq “, alas no. could you please explain ?
I am invited in Brussels to listen to Musharraf tomorrow.
what should I ask him, if he can listen to me. Our
Ambassador and myself exchanged some nice poetries, time
to time and have asked him if I could have some Tabadila-e-Khayal, lets see ? although have Bronchitis and avoid
travelling, but the event is a chance to ask and corner him.
Perhaps the most thought-provoking piece of writing on Benazir’s succession is pasted below.
[quote]
http://www.dawn.com/2008/01/19/op.htm
Deconstructing the ‘dynasty’
By Amjad Bhatti
THE death of Benazir Bhutto and the subsequent transfer of her party’s leadership to her son have reinforced divergent perspectives and narratives on the dynasty syndrome, the legitimacy of collective memory and the cultural archetypes of political populism in Pakistan.
Perhaps, the westernised, urban educated intelligentsia has posited a rigorous critique to the way the gearshift of the largest populist party has been handed over to the son and husband of the slain leader. They argue that the hope of a democratic culture in party politics has become elusive and the appointment of 19-year old Bilawal as PPP chairman has further validated dynastic traditions in Pakistani politics.
It is true, indeed, when the politics of Pakistan is looked at through the “efficient” and “cost-effective” modes of “instrumental rationality”, reducing complex political dynamism to the ceremonial and linear electioneering within and beyond parties. It is false when the notions of dynasty are deconstructed within the social framework of collective memory triggered by civil-military authoritarianism in Pakistan’s history. Critics of instrumental reasoning have contended that it is a specific form of rationality which restricts itself to explaining the hows of an event and action by shrugging off the whys of the same.
In Pakistan’s case and that of the rest of the region, the grundnorm of political populism revolves around cultural symbolism, subjective derivations, emotional convictions, cathartic fixations, charismatic contours and, more pragmatically, household alliances. The collective memory of social transactions remains central to the formation, subscription and rejection of a political identity, judgment and perspective.
Seemingly enlightened and rational discourse on the ethics of politics does not connect to the contextual intricacies and the baseline of everyday politics. Professed principles like internal democracy remain marginalised. Yet marginalised communities do not break away en masse from the “dynastic” mainstream. Why? Is it because of lack of awareness? No.
It is suggested that our memory gives us our past, and our past gives us our identity. Only then can we look to the future and see ourselves as part of a larger temporal and spatial whole. Memories are controlled and articulated to give and seek meanings and sense to events and experiences in our individual, family, community and collective domains.
How is the Bhutto family situated in the collective memory of Pakistanis? Of course, there can be different responses to this but dominantly Benazir’s departure is perceived as a yet another following in the path of bloodline.
The heroic sufferings of the Bhuttos in politics have, arguably, become a captivating factor in influencing the political cognition of the “uneducated” but culturally sensitive masses — more than the objectification of principled politics by a culturally detached intelligentsia. This clash of meanings draws a line between those who interpret the Bhuttos as a dynasty and those who relate to it as a faithful tradition.
Memory is continuity of suffering for some and sickening irrationality for others who tend to break the cycle for expediencies. It is equally irrational. This strand of thinking, according to Jens Brockmeier, a German senior scientist of psychology, stems from a “decontextualised mind” — a mind taken out of its discursive and cultural environment. To quote Brockmeier: “It is an abstraction that isolates just one moment in a continuous flow.”Correspondingly, the episodic memory of individuals and communities flows in the stream of their encounter with and experience of the realities of life. The subjective meanings of objective reality are constructed, stored and recollected in an inter-subjective way, contrary to the sectoral and functional perspective of reality.
I recall a personal instance. During the 2002 floods in Sindh, I was part of a research team. While interviewing people on disasters in Keti Bandar, I spoke to an aged respondent who listed the hanging of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as one of the major disasters including cyclone, drought and floods. This reflects the inter-subjective rationalisation of an apparent political tragedy which was adjudged by the old man — residing in a vulnerable coastal area — as a natural disaster.
It is argued that tragedy and sufferings are primordial expressions of humanity and these prove more enduring communicators in the realm of collective memory. Is it, then a politics of tragedy or the tragedy of politics? The symbolism of suffering and tragedy in politics is not new, rather it is traditionally considered as necessary luggage for “experimenting with the truth”.
Some studies in social psychology suggest that the symbolism of tragedy is seated deep in the “collective unconscious” of the people living in the Indo-Muslim subcontinent. Marx made repeated references to the “Indian melancholy” in his essays on India.
There is a saintly tendency in the Indus valley to commemorate with more zeal the symbolism of martyrdom, the sufferings of resistance and un-muted reverence to victimhood.
Tragedy in this case rules memory, and memory provides the basis for the social and political extension of thoughts and actions, dialectically contributing to the formation of religious, cultural or political expressions with intense appeal.
The instrumentalists tend to miss the point and remain encircled in borrowed inspirations without connecting their imagination to the longitudinal context of the politico-cultural landscape.In communitarian societies where voting is determined not by private individual choice but by consensual considerations engineered by household and clan alliances, how can internal democracy in parties be called upon to dethrone the popular appeal of “dynasties” and “legacies”? Especially a party based on the legacy of martyrdom — the Bhutto legacy can be referred to as an example — invokes the trust that a martyr dies and de-legitimises tyrannical powers and exposes injustice to its fullest. In the political context, it creates an emotional bond between a legacy and its subscriber.
It must be remembered that the Bhutto “dynasty” was founded and flourished in response to military authoritarianism, first under Zia and now under Musharraf. Invincibly, the party led by the Bhuttos still sustains its image as the most powerful contender in contemporary politics. It galvanises the sentiments of protest, resistance and sacrifice more effectively than any other political outfit.
But it does not abide by the editorial advice of the intelligentsia to democratise internally. Still, it rules the collective memory and carries the potential of mobilising people for wider change. If it is a legacy, it is shaped by collective memory which bags popular sanction; democracy also envisions instituting an ethical basis for majoritarian rule.
Theoretically, in line with its own logic, the West-inspired democracy should allow the sentiments and beliefs of the majority to actualise its own perspectives and preferences, with due respect to others. Why contradict, then, the principles of democracy by dismissing popular dynasties? Let’s think about it.
[/quote]
DEAR QUAID.
BILAWAL BHUTTO CHAIRMAN OF PAKISTAN PEOPLES PARTY.
Sad which is not forget in all life . My prays for your long life is every time and every where. This is good decission for the party which you are the head of PPP. I and we all the lot of thankfull to you very much.
Sir reply on my emial thanks
imdad_laghari@yahoo.com
only for OUR BELOVED QUAID BILAWAL BHUTTO
http://www.jang.com.pk/jang/jan2008-daily/06-01-20 08/col1.htm
Jang’s Safdar Mehmood (presumably the Speaker of Zia-era Majlis e Shoora) stresses at least 3 points:
1) Bilawal’s nomination should be seen in the context fo personality cult prevalent in our region and is not unusual for political parties of Pakistan
2) Higher ideals for party leaderships can only evolve in a democratic society, over time.
3) In the last para, he hits the nail on head: Feudalism does not manifest itself by large landowers. But it is a aptitude shared by other parts of Pakistani society including small/large industrialists, politicians, officials, business owners…..
i cant say that i am very satisfied for bilawal being nominated for this seat but one thing i can say that PPP has not maintained the “BHUTTO’S SUPERIORITY” coz zulfikar junior (son of late murtaza bhutto) is also there but like benazir as she was trained by her father insted of her brothers bilawal has grown up under hands of a great and real leader and thats y he has been preffered by the the party members over zulfikar junior coz he is more reasinable for this . i am really worried about this young man and this is very bold step of zardari to hand over this bloody leadership to his son . may God bless him and may he live long to brighten the name of his party set by his nana zulfikar ali bhutto ,the great man in the history of Pakistan after jinnah. PAKISTAN PAINDABAD.