Who will carry Bhutto’s legacy?

Has the legacy of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (ZAB) divided? Who is leading the legacy and Bhutto’s doctrine today, as the PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto has been once again kept away from addressing the 36th death anniversary? It is said he will address a meeting in London, but will not be playing an active role in Pakistani politics for years to come.
The PPP leadership is also not holding its traditional Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting on April 3 nor will there be one-minute silence at the time when Bhutto was hanged. The party believes he was hanged around 2 am.ZAB was hanged in the early hours of April 4, 1979. His trial and execution had been termed the “Judicial murder.”
Bhutto’s politics of the people, by the people and for the people has now bee replaced by Mr. Zardari’s doctrine, which has brought politics back to the “drawing-room from streets.” The PPP now faces the challenge to bounce back in the forthcoming Cantonment Board and local bodies’ elections to be held this year. Can Zardari put some motivation and enthusiasm in millions of Bhutto’s followers or he will continue to follow the “politics of the possible”?
No other family in this part of the world met such a tragic end as that of Bhuttos? Not even Gandhis. ZAB, Benazir, Shahnawaz, Murtaza all died unnatural deaths and the lady who took all this pain, Begum Nusrat Bhutto died after prolonged illness.
It all started with the execution of ZAB and ended with the assassination of his daughter Benazir Bhutto on December 27th, 2007. The only surviving member of his immediate family, Ms Sanam Bhutto, was not interested in carrying the political legacy.If Sanam kept herself away from politics and did not change her mind, there is no one left in the immediate family to carry the legacy.
As for the political legacy, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari made a debut in politics three years back. Like his grandfather and mother, he too found difficulty in speaking Urdu. But, Bilawal’s entry and exit surprised many in the party, as despite his weak Urdu, he gave some glimpses of his grandfather, Pakistan’s most populist leader, who introduced new style in politics and brought politics from “drawing room to the streets” and give people the voice to dissent.
His last major public appearance was in Karachi’s public meeting in which, against his father’s advice, he criticized Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Altaf Hussain and announced a mass movement from Lahore.
By the time the PPP held its last convention in Lahore to mark the Foundation Day of the party on November 30, Zardari decided to keep Bilawal away from politics. Thus, it is for the first time that the co-chairman of the PPP took a decision against the party chairman.
Initially, it was said he was not well and under treatment in London, but it is now more than confirmed that his designation as the Chairman of the PPP will remain “symbolic” and all powers rest with the co-chairman.
Bilawal, who was among the most active young politician on “tweets” and often created sensation with his expressions through “tweets,” may give a rare appearance in London on April 4 in a meeting organised by the PPP.
Though there are speculations that Bakhtawar may replace Bilawal, as Zardari till recently allowed her to sit with him during important party meetings, apparently she is more interested in social work. Many feel her younger sister Aseefa is more inclined to carry their mother’s and grandfather’s political legacy, but at present she too is more active in campaign against “polio.”
What about Murtaza Bhutto’s children. Fatima Bhutto has the cult to lead the legacy, but, she has completely isolated herself from mainstream politics. Author of two books, she took a lot of impact of her father’s death, who got the charisma and style of ZAB. Her brother Zulfiqar Jr. too is not interested in politics while widow Ghinwa Bhutto is still trying to give a new look to the PPP Shaheed Bhutto.
The main hurdles in the reunion of young Bhuttos, from Bilawal to Fatima, are the elders of the two families, who perhaps have their own political interest in keeping the children away from each other. Bilawal entered politics when his party and the family faced serious life threats, which kept him away from active politics, but when he decided to take the risk like his mother, he was not allowed by his father.
Zardari’s political doctrine is different from Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s, as he believes in “managing politics” not “street politics.” In his defense, some party leaders believe he was successful in his style of politics. For the first time, the PPP completed its full five-year term from 2008 to 2013. Due to his politics, the PPP got all the major positions from president to prime minister and speaker National Assembly to chairman Senate (which PPP retained in 2013, as well). He is still heading an unannounced opposition alliance.
Yes, he has changed ZAB’s doctrine of populist politics. Due to Zardari’s failure in populist politics, it has now been replaced by Imran Khan, who now has populist base. Many PPP workers, particularly in the Punjab, had joined Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf or Pakistan Muslim League. For the first time, the PPP vote bank had decline, which the party maintained even when they lost elections.
The PPP has also dropped Bhutto’s basic doctrine that politics belongs to the people and it is the responsibility of the state to provide health and education to its people. He might be a failure in his policy of nationalization but its alternative is not privatization. Even today, in the Western and capitalist world, the state provides basic health and education to the people.
Bhutto’s doctrine of strong trade, peasants and student unions, which once were the backbone of the party, had also been changed. He also gave voice to the people and raised the standard of lower middle class.
Even today, some of our leading politicians tried to adopt Bhutto’s style, but his style was natural. Bhutto was a leader of the Third World and Islamic World. According to Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan, the father of Pakistan’s peaceful nuclear programme, he was the most nationalist leader the country ever had.
“I had never seen a nationalist like Bhutto. His doctrine was to make Pakistan a strong nation and a strong state,” he once told this reporter in an interview.Bhutto’s “ghost” kept the Establishment scared of the PPP’s popularity and prior to Zardari takeover of the party, the PPP never got smooth sailing.
How PPP was “cut to size” is a matter of record and admitted facts. With the fall of the Soviet bloc, Benazir came close to the West, but she remained committed to the basic philosophy that the PPP politics is for the people, by the people and of the people. By the time she was looking for another election win in 2007, she was assassinated on December 27th, 2007.
Whether this brings an end to the long political and family legacy of the “Bhutto” or not could be judged from the fact that Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is practically out.
So, it’s time to look into the past legacy of the family, which dominated the Pakistani politics for almost 40/45 years. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto always wanted to live in “history.” He will always be remembered as a “politician of the people.” But, those who followed his path failed to carry his political legacy.
Bilawal is the only one left, who can carry this legacy. But, can he?The other best option for the party is to have more democracy and let the senior most leader lead the legacy of Bhutto. After all ZAB himself wanted veteran leader Sheikh Rasheed to lead the PPP.The writer is the senior analyst and columnist of GEO, The News and Jang.