Farrukh Khan Pitafi’s Official Website « Will the real PM raise hand? (Part I)

Will the real PM raise hand? (Part I)

Things keep running in circles in the Islamic Republic. Actually the more they change the more they remain the same. And the irony of circumstances is not lost on us. The country has a new democratically elected Prime Minister. But the question arises is Mr Yousuf Raza Gilani really in charge? All the clues we have had point to a negative answer. Why is that exactly?
Well because the vestiges of the old order both inside the country and outside refuse to go. If you have noted initials of President Pervez Musharraf’s name are also PM. So he is the PM that sits in the Presidency. And the presidency continues to play a retrogressive role even today. People may ask how that is possible? The answer is because the People’s Party’s government at the center seems to be surviving today under a deal similar to the days when Benazir Bhutto had become Prime Minister after the demise of General Zia. You had rule but no real power. While in those days the establishment was only learning to play politics and hence had done hardly any proper homework this time it has.
Last time the dissent against the military rule was led by the People’s Party. The PPP it is an open secret has origins in Sindh and not in Punjab. Since our fat establishment is stuffed with the Punjabi class, it had never actually learned to trust a non-Punjabi group. The then ISI’s head Lt Gen (retd) Hamid Gul has repeatedly conceded this point in his concessions for which he should have faced court martial proceedings.
The result was that the Party while not getting the real charge (I am sure you remember who was the Foreign Minister then? Sahibzada Yaqub or some PPP office bearer?) it managed to stay in power for a while without actually losing touch with its popular base.
That luxury alas is not present for this regime. For one Benazir Bhutto is no more and the party has no bloodline factor visible right now. For two the establishment has played its cards well by stationing the PML-N just behind the PPP at such a safe distance that it can consolidate its hold on power at least in Punjab without having to face the embarrassing situation of the PPP. Just consider this. After having assaulted the previous government’s fiscal and monetary policies when Senator Ishaq Dar becomes the Finance Minister and visits the US his statements indicate that the same onerous financial measures will be maintained. Not only that. He tailors a budget keeping that value in mind and then using the excuse of the judicial crisis he manages to quit the ministry. In this way the PML-N with the close support of the establishment not only manages to set the direction but also to free itself of any responsibility for the tough measures. Do you not find any example in our history that resembles this case? Well in 1946 Liaquat Ali Khan was made the Finance Minister of the Undivided India. He with the help of the Quaid’s secretary presented a budget which really rocked the moorings of the Hindu middle class of the country. This is said to be an additional factor in the creation Pakistan. While in this case the purpose might not have been to further divide the country, it seriously delivers a blow to the People’s Party which already seems to be struggling for the political survival.
Unfortunately the PPP is still refusing to accept that it is losing support especially in the urban centers and particularly the Punjab. Today the Prime Minister is in Multan and I got the chance not only to submit my question but also to mutter personal comments while shaking hands. (To be continued)