A SAD SPECTACLE

Much is being read into the recent so called ‘macho’ speech of the Co Chairman of the PPP. Some analysts are calling it some kind of a gauntlet thrown at the ‘establishment’ which they think and hope will be picked up so that fireworks can start. The media loves fireworks because it rakes in the moolah and these days that is the most important consideration. More experienced and savvy people know that the outburst by the Co Chairman was neither a speech nor a gauntlet — it was a sad and pathetic spectacle. It was the response much like the one a cornered rat makes as a last ditch effort to evade a fate that looks inevitable.

  

The Co Chairman forgot that for five long years he was the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Supreme Commander of Pakistan’s Armed Forces. You do not get to go any higher except when called to the eternal abode. For such an eminence to threaten the land that honored him with an end to end shut down that would only end on his say is the mother of all betrayals. To threaten the forces he commanded with public exposure to disgrace them is the mother of all come downs because it lowers one to the level of a blackmailer. Above all such a tirade is a tacit public admission that the Rangers’ operation in Karachi led by a no-nonsense soldier is dead on target and that the target feels the noose tightening and hurting.

Those expecting a response or a flurry of action are in for a surprise. The military will not stoop to pick up the gauntlet because there is no gauntlet to be picked up. The thought about three year military tenures in the top slot as opposed to the ‘permanence’ of the politician is a fallacy and those sitting around the speech-making table knew that. The petrified look on the face of the other Co Chairman under his warrior type turban and the frozen smile on the face of the lady who loves goggles gave away their true feelings as they heard their leader rant and rave. Altaf Bhai now has a rival. What was forgotten was the continuity in the military institution because it is an institution in the true strength of the word with enormous organizational and structural strength and a memory that would put an elephant to shame — so tenures and individuals are not important, the institution is. And above all the military is an institution of Pakistan that for the last seven years has been functioning under and in support of the elected governments. Right now it is fighting to give human and physical security in Pakistan and is unhesitatingly making supreme sacrifices. What is critical is the present and not the past in which the Co Chairman wants to wallow to dredge up failures and lapses.

If the Co Chairman was expecting political forces to rally around him and his party he must be disappointed. The political institution is not known for siding with losers or those about to lose. In fact that is the time the rivals go for the jugular. The PML(N) has wisely distanced itself by words and action. The others have taken the opportunity to condemn and point out the gross misgovernance and neglect that characterizes the government in Sind besides other unsavory doings. The Co Chairman has given the governing party a boost that they would be fools not to exploit. People are talking of their achievements — the decision on Yemen, the CPEC game changer, the improved relationship with the US, local government polls, the cooperative relationship with Afghanistan, the good civil-military interaction and the coming national census next year. The ‘speech’ was ill timed and has highlighted the fall of the PPP — another reminder that democracy works. Right now the military has the entire nation behind it as was evident from the reaction to the barbs from India and the military is being seen as a savior not just on the borders but deep within the country as its forces and intelligence assets not only combat threats but build capacity in civilian institutions to take on future threats. They are in no mood to waste time on mythical gauntlets and other distractions focusing on the past. As far as the advice being given to them by all and sundry — they will do what they think needs to be done and in a time frame that they think is appropriate — not under pressure from analysts and discussants.

How best to destroy Pakistan

By Pakistanpal's Blog

This is not easily done. To even begin serious work on this project you first have to be a Prime Minister with a solid mandate. Then you need to have the covert support of a world power that is vested in this design. And lastly you have to be a very dedicated, hardworking individual, not lulled into inaction by the belief that if you left the country on auto pilot, it will destroy itself. Like a punch drunk boxer the country may have reached a state in which it can neither stand up straight, nor get knocked clean out, until you land a few clean blows to it, and know where you have to land them.

   

To destroy the country the very first essential is you ensure that you are not disturbed nor distracted when you have embarked on this exercise, because this is a task of both concentration and skill. You have to know the value of loyalty, and must surround yourself with people whose loyalty you can utterly swear by. Obviously the pool that you can draw such loyalists from is your own family. So draw them and deploy them in every vital nerve center of government, and proceed with them as a team dedicated to the great goal in mind. Just do not bother if you are accused of behaving like a king. The more you behave like this, the more your underlings will grovel at your feet, the stronger will be the image you project, and the more your people will fear you. And that is where you’d like to be. Any nobility you have should rest only in your words. Your actions should be ruthless, even if they are stupid.

   

But the country is too large and just one family’s human resource pool will be unequal to the task of providing you the numbers required. You therefore have to draw people from the bureaucracy as well. When making your choice make certain that you choose the sharp of mind and servile of manner i.e the type who are born to please, and wont mind selling off their grandmothers to reach and stay in your good graces.To ensure they stay there, allow them their pound of flesh. Free loyalty is a mark of sincerity, and sincerity is to be suspected. And remember whomever else you choose, just do not let your favour settle on a self-respecting officer. Such a person is a huge risk. He may have dormant germs of honesty which are often closely allied to patriotism. And patriotism in any form is poison for your design.

If you can do this in your first couple of months, you will have successfully built yourself the right platform, from which to launch your second phase. You have now to secure yourself against any possibility of losing power, so make your position unassailable. Immediately start by destroying the police, making it a personal force to be used effectively against your own people. Take a leaf out of Hitler’s book. Stuff this force with thugs who are totally loyal to you, and will demonstrate this loyalty by breaking, without the slightest compunction, the bones of people who dare agitate for their rights. Never forget, your downfall begins where their rights start. This is the first lesson of “democracy” which you and your loved ones must imbibe early. The trick is to keep hollering about democracy but keeping the rabble, who were stupid enough to vote for you, in their place. For if they had deserved anything better, they would not have voted for you to begin with.

Next, you go for the judiciary. The system of selection to the ranks of higher judiciary is so wonderfully flawed that you can infiltrate any number of squint-eyed, black-hearted, venal ignoramuses into the system, and then groom them all the way into CJs. And if you are careful with your selection, before you know it, you are likely to have the same majority on the benches, that you have in parliament. And what a feeling of smugness that should give you!

But for the while you are accomplishing the above, remember that countries are best destroyed, by destroying their economies. And economies cannot be destroyed by ham-fisted policies and extravagance alone. Plunder of national wealth is the most effective force multiplier you need to invoke. The multiple advantages of this are, that not only does this lead to hollowing out the country whose destruction you wish, but it simultaneously spreads injustice and bad governance throughout the land, which in turn, hastens the fall of a state like nothing else will; while at the same time you end up enriching your family and yourself in the process.

But as you thieve from your people, do not forget to align the members of parliament on your side, because they are yet another phalanx that has the capability of removing you from power. Yet this you cannot accomplish through sweet talk and smiles alone. You have to get them invested in the project by making them partners in theft. Unless you assuage their hunger, they will be conspiring with the army to get rid of you. Each one of them is exactly like you, a bunch of grasping blackguards nurtured on years of theft and plunder. In short they are your natural allies. Just lift slightly the lid of the till for them, and see how they wag their tails and slurp at your heels. Whores masquerading as leaders of the people.

But your own greed will counsel otherwise. It will suggest to you that sharing with them will make you poorer. But look at this the other way. Put a value on being able to commit theft without unnecessary disturbance, and you will see the value of sharing. And besides, when you have to loot the entire country, know that there is enough in it to make the whole lot of you rich beyond imagination. Just think. Only half the population is living below the poverty line. Imagine how many thousands of the privileged have the poor enriched to get themselves to their present level of wretchedness, and how many years it has taken them to do so. And you may have no more than a tenth of those years to live anyhow, yet you still have a full half of the population left to you to impoverish and despoil ! Looked at it this way, would’nt you say that the future looks terribly bright for you and your little ones, despite the sharing of loot with members of the opposition, which your largeness of heart has managed to make “friendly”? Besides wont this go down for times immemorial as your original contribution to the theory of trouble-free governance and democracy?

The huge incidental advantage of committing theft in partnership with the parliamentary opposition is that now you can amend the constitution the way you want. Through these amendments you can make certain that no matter how future elections go, you or your partners-in-theft will remain in power and will keep making hay . And nothing can give you a better guarantee of continued plunder with total immunity, than this arrangement.

You are now nearly there, and your goal is within easy reach of achievement, but your greatest hurdle still remains in place. You have neglected the dismantling of the army. Your idiotic advisers must surely have advised you to start this project by first dealing with the army, and to do so by your favoured technique of giving a dog a bad name, and then trying to hang him. This is exactly how this should not be done–remember what happened the last few times you attempted this? And remember how your mouthpiece ministers made a hash of it?

Next time you want to proceed with trying to subvert the army, please dont go looking for an army chief who will be loyal to you. Remember when a general becomes an army chief, he does not need to be loyal to anybody, and almost his first temptation to dispense with someone who is a stuffed Prime Minister. You have already made an ass of yourself many times—so learn a lesson. Either the Chief will leave in disgust leaving you holding the can or he will boot you out of the country.

It is the army which is really holding this country together, not “democracy” or the constitution, which you have already screwed up anyway. So when you have successfully subverted the army there is no time for you to rest. This is the time for you to pack up and leave because any day now , a whole lot of shit will hit the fan, and you dont want to get caught up in it, though no one will have deserved this more than you.

Bye for now. See you in London.

Eid, Elite and the People!

By Aik Awaz - One Voice

"Qu'ils mangent de la brioche" a phrase often associated to Marie Antoinette. Though Marie Antoinette may or may not have said this, this phrase and how it was supposedly used does represent our political and non-political elite. Honorable ex-Senator Rehman Malik, who very recently was forced off a PIA flight by the passenger(s) for keeping them stranded in the plane for hours, has made a comment about the ongoing PTI protests which actually reminded me of Marie Antoinette and this infamous phrase. Mr Rehman Malik has asked Imran Khan to call off the protest before Eid so people taking part in the protests can go home and celebrate Eid.

 

“Celebrate Eid” hmmm… Does Mr Rehman Malik know why the people are protesting? If he does then seriously we have Marie Antoinette reincarnate here amongst us. If he doesn’t than we have a classic Pakistani politician who has nothing to do with the common people! Neither of these are of course forgivable sins.

Eid for people belonging to the middle class (lower and upper) in Pakistan has become a time of the year that they fear and definitely do not look forward to (apart from its religious importance). LIke any socio-religious event, Eid ul Adha is a day that when people are expected to buy a healthy animal, show it around the neighborhood and then sacrifice it on the Eid day to distribute its meat amongst the poor, friends and relatives. So whats the problem here? The problem is that the cost of living has almost crossed the means of almost all middle class people who rely on salaries, small businesses or their professional expertise. Come Eid and prices of everything edible and wearable quadruple (if not more). A sacrificial animal starts costing more than its buyer (and seller). Mr Rehman Malik and hundreds of other naive political leaders have failed to understand that the protests being led PTI and PAT have only continued for this long (almost fifty days now [30th of September 2014]) because the government has completely failed to address the grievances being faced by the masses. People are not there because Imran Khan is holding them hostage there or using black magic to keep them glued to his jalsas (protests). He is simply showing the world what is happening in Pakistan, he is educating the masses about their rights and how they can fight back. He is exposing mega scale corruption by the so called political leaders. He is showing the people why they are suffering and how they can change their and their children’s destiny.

What is there to celebrate? Hunger, illiteracy, injustice, intolerance, extremism, violence, corruption? Is that what we will be celebrating on this Eid? Our political leaders have no idea how far and how hard they have pushed the people and the strange thing is that these buffoons still don’t realize their mistakes and errors of their ways. These so called politically “mature” (pronounced manure) leaders think that Imran Khan is crazy and those who are following him are “burger crowd”. Well guess what our beloathed leaders of the ‘80s & ‘90s you are in for a shock… Times have changed! You have witnessed the new Pakistan in PTI’s Karachi and Lahore jalsas. You can pretend that #NayaPakistan and #Azaadi are just online social media fads that will fade away but deep inside all of you corrupt politicians know that people of Pakistan have spoken. Our PM Nawaz Sharif’s statement to the media in US that only a “few handful trouble makers” are involved in damaging the image of the government shows how pathetically ill-informed and delusional he has become due to his greed for power and wealth.

But people of Pakistan are taking back their country and their rights. They have started challenging the states oppressive and corrupt governance practices. People are standing up against unequal treatment and VIP culture. People are demanding justice. People want peace and progress… they want an end to extremism and violence.

Those who thought that Pakistan Army or Intelligence agencies were involved in this movement have been proven wrong. The only support that this movement has received from the military is that the military has distanced itself from this political crisis and warned the government not to use force against the people of Pakistan. Army continues to perform its duties of protecting the country from internal and external threats and uprooting terrorist networks. It continues to help the people affected by the natural disasters. May be that is why people of Pakistan love their Armed Forces so much and may be this is the reason why these corrupt politicians fear their own army so much. One is for the people and the other is against the people.

Coming back to Rehman Malik, the brave man Mr Arjumand Hussain who scolded and ultimately offloaded the ex-Senator had to pay a price, he was fired from his job at Gerry’s Group due to political pressure. The DJ who manages sound and music at PTI rallies was arrested without any charges. The government which has been charged with murders of eighteen unarmed people (including women), failed to protect minorities and failed to provide any relief to the masses is now under severe pressure. PML-N leadership is now panicking and doing one stupid thing after another. Badly exposed and fractured, PML-N and its PPP allies are now reaching their point of extinction. Its evolution of democracy and natural selection at work. #NayaPakistan and #Azaadi is the new mantra of all honest and hard working Pakistanis. #GoNawazGo

The Cost of Azaadi

By Saman Tariq
ZoneAsia-Pk

There is a famous saying that everything comes with a price; the recent political crisis has already cost Pakistan more than could be bargained for.  Expanded over almost 10 days, the deadlock between two major political forces PTI and PML (N) still continues without any foreseeable resolution.  Where PTI is adamant on their demands, PML (N) has also made it clear that resignation of the PM and midterm elections are out of question.

Amid calls for resignation of the PM and speculations concerning a military coup; political uncertainty is looming over country’s economy. The economic brunt of this political crisis is evident by reports of a 222 points fall in Karachi stock market. In addition to that, traders have also shown concern over the prolonged sit-ins in the Capital and their likelihood to paralyze trade and business activities.  A Business Recorder report highlights the losses of Rs. 30 billion in local trade and businesses over 12 days following the political turmoil. Where PML (N) has claimed a loss of around Rs. 500 billion to the national economy due to these ongoing protests, other projects such as establishing ten coal fired power plants have also been stalled due to disinterest of the investors for the time being.

On international front, with an ongoing military operation in North Waziristan following terrorism allegations by Afghanistan, it is indeed a crucial time for Pakistan. The diplomatic efforts over the past few months and subsequent progress with another neighboring country India have also been halted after India canceled talks with Pakistan, accusing it of meddling in internal affairs of the former. Under these circumstances, when any international support for Pakistan is of high significance, particularly a SAARC member, Sri Lankan President, Mahinda Rajapaksa had to cancel his trip in the wake of current political situation of Pakistan.  Keeping in mind the current international standing of Pakistan, the harsh criticism of the U.S. Ambassador by Imran Khan for meddling into internal affairs of Pakistan is unlikely to have positive repercussions in the long term for Pak-US relations.

This confrontational politics is not free of cost even for the two major parties involved in this crisis. From the decision to carry on the with the march even after announcement of formation of an independent Judicial Commission to probe rigging allegations to their refusal to compromise on any of the six demands put forth , resignation of the PM being the top priority, PTI is on the point of no return .  The pressure of the crowd present at the sit-in to take concentrate actions for ousting of the PM is an added disadvantage as these supporters are also not willing to settle for anything less now, after days of sit-in. The sit-in might be gaining moment; depending on how one perceives it, however people have started raising questions over PTI’s perplexed rhetoric (http://www.zoneasia-pk.com/perplexed-rhetoric-pti/). Their abandonment of KPK is being cashed upon by other political forces in the province, with displaced families and floods taking a toll over other issues.

The government, on the other hand, is at the brink of losing credibility over allegations put forth by PTI, due to their reluctance towards the initial demand of PTI to probe into four allegedly rigged constituencies. The decision to probe into the matter through formation of an independent Judicial Commission is perhaps seen by many as a step too little too late. PML (N) with the baggage of 14 PAT workers killed by police in Lahore is being openly criticized for their dictatorial tactics. Out of other pressing issues, the pressure over federal government to facilitate displaced families is also worth mentioning.  The elders of North Waziristan Agency have shown discontent over the shelter provided in KPK, threatening to stage a protest outside the parliament if they are forced to vacate school buildings.

In the end, both parties are being blamed for negligence particularly in their respective provinces and needless to say, gaining from the loss of both PTI and PML (N), parties such as PPP, MQM and JI have emerged as rational mediating forces in current political crisis.

Another considerable downside of this turmoil has been the plausible space created for the military to exercise their influence, following the political deadlock. Perhaps both parties are relying on the army to exert pressure on the other political force to back down in their favor. Even as the ISPR issued statements over seeking a political solution by the parties involved, there were reports of an agreement between the PM and the military over a shared political space. If history is anything to go by, in civil-military relations, superseding of institutions by any single entity is unlikely to go in favor of the system.

While the talks between PTI and PML (N) have resumed after a standstill, the clash of egos between the two parties needs to discontinue in greater interest of the country. In sincere efforts to end this deadlock, a compromise should be agreed upon between the two, where legitimate demands such as resignation of CM Punjab, electoral reforms, probe over rigging and accountability if proved guilty should be accepted by the government; in return, PTI should withdraw the demand of PM’s resignation and let the due process take its course.  After all, it is high time that some amount of normalcy returns in the country.

Kicking Butt’s butt

Thanks to Pakistan’s numerous and hyper active TV channels Pakistanis, in fact the whole world, were introduced to Lahore’s Neanderthal Butt. Butt has many meanings like cigarette butt, the butt of all jokes and of course the human rear end. And there are the Butts of Lahore—a particular clan usually associated with food, drink and body building with a marked aversion to any intellectual activity. A new Butt activity was seen on TV during the shameful Model Town massacre.

While policemen led by their officers were beating up women and shooting people dead a man was seen rampaging through the streets breaking up car windows and smashing anything around. The TV identified him as one Gulloo Butt---an associate of PML(N) politicians and a police tout—whatever that means. What astounded everyone was the patronage he was getting from grinning policemen who seemed to be encouraging him in his dastardly deeds. He seemed oblivious to eye witnesses and TV cameras confident that his powerful friends who had given him the task he was doing would save him. They probably will. A police officer was seen embracing him.

Isn’t it time someone kicked Mr Butt’s butt? And also the butts of all those associated with him—no matter how high and mighty they are. If ever a Butt needed kicking it is this despicable character called Gulloo Butt. The police are not going to do it. They are simply there to do what they are ordered to and nobody is going to order them to kick Butt’s butt. This Butt has disgraced all the Butts in the world so maybe they can get together for a butt kicking session.

Going from the picture splashed across all the newspapers and the shameful images on the TV screen this Butt did not look quite like a Butt. But then there are all kinds of Butts—short, tall, skinny, fat etc.  This criminal Butt has been arrested because he was caught in the act and there was no way that his actions could be condoned. He may even be jailed if respectable Butts can take time off from eating to pressurize the government--- but even in jail he will enjoy perks and privileges and just bide his time. Sad but that is reality. Butts like Gulloo Butt are needed to kick butts and once in a while get their own butts kicked to save their masters butts. One thing is for sure the word Butt and butt has acquired a whole new meaning and from now on may be used interchangeably with Punjab Police.  Another character—probably not a Butt—was seen roaming loutishly with a pistol in his hand under police patronage. Gulloo Butt did get a public thrashing outside a court where he was brought by the police but the TV cameras caught policemen advising him to play dead and not resist till they could take him away.

The saddest part of this sad day were the killings by the police. Cold blooded murder by law enforcers. It doesn’t get worse than this—ever.