Adil Najam
I found this full page ad in Dawn very interesting. And also very democratic. Maybe a national conversation does need to be held on who (or what qualities) makes for a good prime Minister?
(click picture to see a larger, more readable, image)
Do you have any ideas? Lets try to do this not on the basis of who can win, but who (or what qualities) should we want as our Prime Minister. At least as an intellectual exercise, and a national conversation, we should be able to get out of Benazir Bhutto v. Nawaz Sharif v. Pervaiz Elahi type of ‘pragmatic’ discussion into a discussion of what we really would like to see in a Prime Minister. Dawn’s set of criteria is a very good place to start.
So, folks, give us your ideas but please please please do not again repeat the same old slogans and naaras about why you don’t like who you don’t like. Lets try to focus this on who you like, and why. And even this is someone who has no real chance of winning, lets at least think about what qualities makes you wish that this person would win.
The ad gives these criteria for the person we should be looking for:
- He should be bold in upholding the law without fear or favor, but his actions must be tempered by the heart.
- He must be learned in teh art of policy making, but not lacking in mobilizing popular support for his policies.
- He must be honest to a fault, but neither dull nor unimaginative as to be able to figure our white-collar crime.
- He must deal with civil servants with firmness and retain an unerring belief in teh rule of law. He must allow a sense of participation around him so the Pakistani electorate is able to guide his thinking. He must shepard a nation of activists – not police a fold of huddled sheep.
One should note that they clarify: “This man or indeed woman could be completely unknown. Or it could be that astute and honest politician who long deserves recognition for integrity, competence, or even an ability to perform a deft Machiavellian maneuver.”
Imran Khan …because he has already proved his sincerity something in the shape of Shaukat Khanum hospital….his ideas for running a country i.e. justice system and education for all….and his personality to deal with leaders at the international level in a dignified manner.
Whenever I read Palto’s eutopia and his attributes of a leader, the closest one who comes to my mind is Imran Khan.I am sure if Plato were pakistani(no insult intended) he would have opted for Imran Khan, and of course who dares disagreeing with Plato.
Whoever is going to be the next PM of Pakistan should be well aware of the ethnic fault-lines in Pakistan where a govt. whose composition and actions does not reflect all areas of Pakistan will be a disaster for Pakistan. Case in point NS’s second term where, drunk with his ‘Heavy Mandate’ his govt. became too Punjab-centric.
We must not allow another situation where ‘Idhr Hum, Udhr Tum’ becomes a choice. PML (a-z) may win the whole Punjab but it has almost no roots in Sindh and not enough in NWFP (other than the Hindko region).
Why not form a govt. of national consensus for next 5-15 years and sort out every major issues (military’s involvement, role of Islam, mega-dams…)? I don’t see much good coming out of the upcoming elections….
I tend to agree with PMA on Imran Khan’s obsession with his supposedly tribal ethnicity. It sounds so childish. Particularly when we know he is as good a Lahori as any. But I thought he had overcome that obsession and didn’t talk about it anymore. Or does he?
Amir Ali,
Childish Rows
@ Once the Shareefs are in power again, why not put
them on the slate, i.e. check if all the cases against them
are correct or not, Musharraf used nonsensical and
baseless thing against Shareef, it was Kargil’s row
between them, and the whole nation was SACRIFIED,
God damn it !!!,