Pakistan’s Army-led Political Farce Continues

Developing Just Leadership

Zafar Bangash

Rabi' al-Thani 17, 1445 2023-11-01

Opinion

by Zafar Bangash (Opinion, Crescent International Vol. 53, No. 9, Rabi' al-Thani, 1445)

The bone-headed Pakistani generals continue to push the country towards complete destruction. Despite its immense potential, Pakistan has become a laughing stock of the world today. The army-installed clowns go around begging for money simply to keep the economy afloat. The world, however, has tired of its begging bowl approach and wishes to have nothing to do with it.

The latest political farce was enacted when the former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif was welcomed with elaborate protocol after spending nearly four years in self-imposed exile. He is a convicted criminal and should have been promptly arrested upon arrival in Islamabad on October 21 and locked up in prison. Instead, he was accorded elaborate protocol reserved for prime ministers.

Protocols are considered very important in Pakistan because petty men—and some women—want to amplify their importance. Not fit to be even chowkidars (door men), these criminals strut about the land as if they matter. The masses have undisguised contempt for them.

This was evident, most recently, from the fact that people had to be bribed to get them to the venue where Nawaz Sharif was to address a rally at Minar-e Pakistan in Lahore. People were offered not only motorbikes but also honey-moon trips!

The particular faction of the Pakistan Muslim League, referred to as ‘N-League’ (named after Nawaz), also had to threaten party members if they did not show up at the rally. Rana Sanaullah, a venal character and mass murderer—he even looks like an outlaw—said the party had prepared an app that would track the party members’ whereabouts. If they did not show up at the rally, there would be serious consequences.

Despite the bribes—and the threats—and massive support from the police, bureaucracy and army, less than 20,000 people showed up when arrangements had been made for 40,000 people. The empty chairs were covered by hoisting party flags, three or four at each chair, to make the place look full.

Beyond this political farce, there are far more serious issues at play. The army, or more precisely the army chief, General Asim Munir, controls everything in the country. He is not particularly bright. He also has a reputation as an extremely petty person, hell-bent on exacting revenge from those he perceives as his enemies. The list is long because most people do not suffer fools easily.

It is still a mystery how he made it to the top slot in the army. In the past, Pakistani generals possessed some intelligence even if they were just as evil.

The Pakistan army has always been subservient to the US. It is a mercenary outfit that serves its American masters. It was at the behest of the Americans that the former army chief, Qamar Javed Bajwa, another venal character, ousted the elected prime minister Imran Khan from office. He currently languishes in a stinking jail cell on bogus charges.

This is another sad saga of Pakistani politics. An honest person, Imran Khan had performed well as prime minister. Even before he got into office, he had established three world class cancer hospitals with his own money and funds raised from the people. Poor people, almost 90% of the population, received free treatment in these hospitals.

Imran Khan also established a world class university in the country. People had so much faith in him that wherever he went for fund-raising, they would hand him cash. He did not betray their trust.

Despite his upper-class upbringing, he easily intermingled with the people, coming down to their level. He would sit on the floor to have meals with them. He also established the Ehsaas Program whereby poor people were provided shelter, free food and even a health card. He made loans available to people to start businesses.

All these schemes were enormously successful. In addition, he improved Pakistan’s economy to such an extent that it registered a growth rate of 6% despite the pandemic which his government managed with great success. It won international accolades.

So, why was he ousted from power? He wanted to pursue an independent foreign policy, not one dictated by the Americans. This is not what the arrogant Americans could tolerate. They ordered their slaves in the Pakistan army to oust him from power.

The army top brass, led by Bajwa, not only promptly obliged but thought that once out of power, Imran Khan would be forgotten by the people. This is what happened to politicians in the past.

What was and is different about Imran Khan is that he is extremely popular with the masses. The rallies he organized at very short notice were attended by hundreds of thousands of people. This was a new phenomenon in Pakistan’s history.

The evil men in khaki then tried to kill Imran Khan. On November 3, 2022, an assassination attempt was made on his life at Wazirabad as he was leading a long march to Islamabad. Nobody has any doubt that it was army-engineered. A subsequent attempt was made in March 2023. Miraculously, Imran Khan survived both.

His popularity scared the living daylights out of the generals. Imran Khan had to be stopped. Despite strutting about with medals on their chest threatening to fix anyone who dares cross their line, the generals are cowards. Mention India to them and they shiver in their boots.

Imran Khan is perceived as the “enemy” because he is honest, upright and wants Pakistan to be truly independent. The generals had to do something to get him out of the way. They have levelled bogus charges against him to tie him down in court cases.

Pakistan’s other tragedy is that the courts and judges, barring very few exceptions, do not dispense justice. They take their orders from the generals. Judgements are rendered not based on the law or the constitution but what the generals and their minions dictate.

The nearly 200 cases against Imran Khan are proof of this. They are all bogus and without merit. The latest case relates to the allegation that he revealed a cipher letter in which the Americans had demanded his ouster. But did he?

Were it not for the seriousness of the charge, it would be laughable. At a rally on March 27, 2022, Imran Khan had waved a piece of paper saying it contained proof of American interference in Pakistan’s internal affairs.

The cipher case allegation needs explaining. Pakistani diplomats posted abroad send secret messages through coded words to the foreign office in Islamabad. Once received, the letter is decoded and written in plain English. Several copies are circulated including to the foreign minister (at the time Shah Mehmood Qureshi) and the prime minister (Imran Khan).

This is what happened to the coded letter received from the Pakistan embassy in Washington DC. It is quite revealing that the contents of the cipher letter were acted upon by then army chief, Bajwa to oust Imran Khan from power, but the latter faces allegations because he revealed its contents! How else does one define a farce.

On the other hand of the political spectrum, a convicted criminal, Nawaz Sharif is being promoted because he has made a deal with the army chief. Never mind that he plundered state resources during three stints as prime minister. He cannot provide proof of how he acquired properties in the most expensive area of London. This is also true for his equally thieving daughter, Maryam Safdar.

Nawaz Sharif’s convictions have been set aside and plans are afoot to install him, yet again, as prime minister. Even the thick-headed generals should be able to see that that would be disastrous for Pakistan. So, why are they doing this?

Informed observers believe that the generals have been compromised by Nawaz Sharif. There are perhaps videos of their illicit activities. If these are exposed, they would cause problems for them, at the very least in their families. It appears there is a limit to even their shamelessness.

The country, however, can go to the dogs, and the generals.