Politics is about perception. I don’t know who said this, but it is an adage that defines political governance across the globe. People act on beliefs manufactured through the complex processes of cognition that are in turn influenced by propaganda, sloganeering, ideology, political debate, media and real politik.
Just two years away from the next general election, the jury is out on who will prevail and who will be vanquished on the chessboard of Pakistani politics. For readers the politically aware, there’s always a suitcase full of reasons why their party ought to be in power. The first casualty of this political devotion, however, is the ability to consider the voice of the detractor, the opposing political critique. Here I attempt to examine and endorse that opposing viewpoint in the context of each political party.
For the PML-N, 2015 was the year to sit back and finally enjoy the fruits of political power. The ruling party has celebrated the Chinese deal, signed some major energy and transport agreements, and showcased itself as the only political party capable of taking up the national resolve against terrorism. Its critics, however, opine that there is more to the Chinese deal than meets the eye. For one, all project commitments thus far appear to be on paper, with actual work yet to commence, reliant as it is on stable fiscal and internal security conditions.
More importantly, will the fine print of the economic corridor actually enable Pakistan to achieve the much touted state of self-sufficiency in the next decade? Or will it further destabilise our already fragile economy, forcing us to assume a patron-client relationship with our Chinese neighbour, once the expensive debt servicing requirements and sovereign guarantees that form the bedrock of the power purchase agreements kick in?
Then, there are the adjustments to the political landscape in the aftermath of the 2014 dharna. Here, critics allege that the government narrowly escaped an ouster by making an expensive compromise with the establishment, meekly hanging up its gloves in the areas of foreign policy, defence and national security. The fallout: foreign policy initiatives of immediate importance concerning Afghanistan and India are being spearheaded by the establishment; the military is providing the principal assurance on national security; and the government has endorsed the formation of military courts, the hangings of alleged terrorists and the Karachi operation.
In short, critics argue that, to avoid any political dissonance or confrontation, the government has happily assumed the role of loyal adjutant to the establishment. This approach of conceding political space for political survival is a short-term fix. While it may allow the PML-N to complete its term, it may not guarantee its reappointment.
For the MQM, 2015 was a depressing year. Paralysed by the Ranger’s operation, the party has appeared indefensible on the grounds of its alleged involvement in terrorism, extortion, gun running, land grabbing and corruption. Its leadership, flustered with the unanimity of resolve the government and the establishment have demonstrated in challenging its hold over Karachi, has responded with timid denials and clarifications, in stark contrast with its earlier proclivity for issuing ultimatums and demonstrating party muscle on the streets.
Its critics accuse the party of remaining hostage to the whims of its godfather in absentia, who endorses coercion and fear in politics, whose televised and radio broadcasts do little to promote his credentials, and whose recent tenure of self-imposed exile in London has been mired in police and legal investigations. Despite having achieved a landslide comeback in the local bodies polls, critics predict that the party may lose its hold on the port city and its importance in national politics should it not engage, forthwith, in some serious introspection to reengineer its political presence in the country.
The PPP has been the biggest casualty of the 2013 general elections. During its five-year rule, the party appeared somnolent and indifferent to matters of national governance, ending its five-year run with little to boast of but the 18th Amendment. On top of that, one of the party’s prime ministers was prematurely disqualified and ousted from office on charges of obstructing the law, and his replacement ended his brief tenure mired in the controversy of corruption charges.
While Zardari appeared during his tenure as president as the unmoved and mysterious puppeteer in the shadows, always two steps ahead of his political opponents, the shallow applause for the mythology of his political prowess has been silenced since the party’s political demise in 2013. And the drift and disarray continues among party ranks. Critics argue that the party has no direction, no sense of purpose and no cogent political strategy to enable it to regain its hold in national politics.
The party’s leadership remains undecided, also, as to who will usher in the party’s political future, having failed thus far to capture the national imagination through either Bilawal or Asifa, who appear more like reluctant adolescent mascots of the grand Bhutto legacy than young leaders of promise. It is a time of final reckoning, critics opine, when those in the party with a genuine resolve for sincere work and a commitment to the party’s socialist credo should distance themselves from the rank opportunists if the party is to have any chance in 2018.
And finally the PTI. Khan’s dharna of 2014 may have been a clever political gambit, but it failed to deliver him to the coveted PM’s office. Thereafter, the results of the JIC’s report on election fraud, followed by a drubbing at the hands of the MQM in the Karachi re-election in NA-246 have all generated bad press for the party and its leader. While the LB poll results for the PTI in Punjab were encouraging, Khan can no longer expect to ride into 2018 on the juggernaut of popular public support. Critics argue that if the PTI cannot deliver in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in five years there is little hope it will on a national level; and thus far evidence of tangible progress in the province is thin.
Then there is the matter of Khan’s own political and ideological positions. His blurred, often duplicitous, stance on terrorism leads many to regard him as a closet right-winger; and stories of a mercurial temperament, a refusal to pay heed to the saner voices in his camp, a pathological rigidity in party affairs and his trademark arrogance do little to help the kaptaan’s case for leadership. There is time yet for the PTI to recover from these setbacks. KP beckons as the conduit to political success. Now if only there were someone who could convince Khan.
The previous year has been a tragic one for Pakistan. Emerging from the ashes of political dissent and terrorism, we may imagine ourselves as a nation poised to either capitalise on the advantages of regional economic and security cooperation, or remain hostage to the ravages of a culture that celebrates ignorance and remains unable to learn from history.
Newer challenges beset us: the Pathankot affair and the Saudi-Iran deadlock pose daunting tests of statesmanship. It remains to be seen whether the powers that be will continue down the beaten yet familiar path of decline or hearken to the voices of criticism. Our future, certainly, hinges on this choice.
The writer is a freelance columnist.
Email: kmushir@hotmail.com
Twitter: @kmushir
