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mtgondal · #2 Friday, June 01, 2007

Power politics and Musharraf

Sufi Imdad Ali Soomro

As the general elections are approaching, all politicians are moving to another political gambit, though President General Pervez Musharraf continues to dominate the political horizon. Even the assault on the judiciary did not stir up opposition parties to unite under one agenda to launch a movement against President Musharraf. Before taking action against Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, President Musharraf neither bothered to consult the cabinet nor seek the advice of legal experts. The president’s action has shaken Pakistan. Sanctity of Parliament is flagrantly violated and members of the National Assembly did not dare to discuss this thorny issue in public. This led to lawyers coming out on the streets and civil society groups joining them.

The print and electronic media played an impartial and transparent role in the judicial crisis. The government tried its utmost to tame journalists and threatened owners of private TV channels to stop exclusive coverage of the issue, otherwise they should be ready to face dire consequences. The attack on an electronic channel office further weakened the position of the government and national as well as international criticism put the president in an awkward position. President Musharraf not only apologised for the attack on the media, but also assured exemplary punishment to the culprits.

Within no time, the establishment ordered the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to close the transmission of channels that displayed the footage of the non-functional Chief Justice of Pakistan. It further provoked lawyers and civil society groups to condemn the government’s act and compelled political parties to hold demonstrations against the government in the apex court premises. Law enforcement agencies got infuriated and ransacked the media office and threatened the lives of journalists who were in the building.

The country is passing through a very critical juncture, as the situation in Balochistan, Waziristan and Bajaur is volatile. Suicide bombers have created panic and terrible fear in society. Even the army garrisons are not safe from terrorist attacks. The growing influence of the Taliban is taking deep roots in society, which is a negative omen. Religio-political parties are still posing challenges to the government’s liberal policies. The entire governance and economy is in a big mess. All and sundry know that corruption is at an all-time high in the state machinery. Abuse of power and authority are daily headlines. President Musharraf’s political allies are more a liability than asset for him. Most leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q) are corrupt, inefficient and ineffective, with no sign of securing the required seats in the next general elections. The ruling coalition, which holds a majority in Parliament as well as in three provinces, has not emerged as a strong party as compared to the PPPP and the PML (N). Many PML (Q) leaders admitted privately that the party strength would be nothing without the full backing of President Musharraf. There is also serious internal dissent within the PML (Q). President Musharraf had relied heavily on Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and his ministers, who have miserably failed on all counts.

President Musharraf did not feel comfortable to defend his action against the Chief Justice for the first time in eight years. Most members of the cabinet avoided facing the media wrath. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, who convinced President Musharraf to send references against the Chief Justice of Pakistan to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) remained off the political scene. The PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain deliberately distanced himself from the judicial crisis and prominent lawyers intentionally avoided defending the government action at the Supreme Judicial Council. Bar Councils across the country became active and cancelled the licences of those advocates who supported the government stance.

Most political pundits are of the view that all political parties, willingly or reluctantly, are in unison to take part in the forthcoming general elections which will be held at the end of the year under the shadow of President Musharraf. Workers of major political parties may advise their party stalwarts to boycott the forthcoming elections in order to put political pressure on President Musharraf to put off his uniform, bring about electoral reforms and a neutral caretaker government. Pakistan People’s Party, which has not entered into an agreement with President Musharraf is asking other political parties, including PML (N) and MMA, not to leave ground for pro-government leaders, who are enthusiastic to get President Musharraf re-elected by the present assemblies.

President Musharraf is in the process of contriving a new political game before the general elections, which he has described as the “mother of all elections”. These elections will be a litmus test for the political survival of General Pervez Musharraf and his King’s party — the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Q). President Musharraf has already kicked off his election campaign and at every political forum he not only emphasised but also sternly warned people to cast votes in favour of moderate parties, otherwise that would be the end of Jinnah’s Pakistan. Interestingly, he did not stress on people voting in favour of the ruling party, but stressed supporting a liberal policy in order to block growing Talibanism, which is an impending threat to the country.

In such a difficult situation it is inevitable for the president to work hand-in-glove with the PPPP, which is a liberal and secular party. The PPPP is still the largest party and has strong roots in the masses. Priorities and objectives of the president and the PPPP are identical, but both parties lack mutual confidence and trust. Many seasoned leaders of the ruling party and close aides of President Musharraf have been holding talks with the PPPP leadership to pave the way for a political understanding between a military ruler and Benazir Bhutto. For any such understanding, both sides will have to accommodate each other in accordance with the ‘give and take’ principle. If President Musharraf would seek Benazir’s support for his re-election for a second term, the latter would expect in return the withdrawal of all corruption cases against her and her spouse, Asif Zardari, besides a commitment from the General to remove all the legal and constitutional hurdles created by the establishment to stop her return to Pakistan and to the Prime Minister’s House for a third term.

Benazir Bhutto understands quite well that President Musharraf’s real power lies in his military uniform and as long as he stays in command of the army, the political parties, including the PPPP, will have to play the role of a junior partner in the future set-up even after a so-called power sharing deal. However, in the absence of a credible guarantor, none of the two seems ready to trust each other because of their track record with regard to keeping promises. Before giving a green signal to the PPPP Chairperson, President Musharraf would first like to urge the PPPP to re-elect him as president in uniform because he fears that Benazir may betray him as she did with late Ghulam Ishaq Khan.