The present situation in Karachi is the culmination of many, many years of misgovernance under persons elected to govern but who turned to criminal activities. Among their main pursuits were extortion, kidnapping and even murder, all backed with political muscle. So, when the Saulat Mirza televised confession appeared one was shocked, but the facts were already well known on the street. The details were not. Saulat Mirza has provided these details. The shocking thing is the involvement of the higher echelons of the party involved. Even now it is too dangerous to name the party for the aura of fear still hangs in the air. The extent of this criminality can only be pieced together but the network of the MQM machine is so tight, it is difficult to obtain any conclusive proof. However, stories are now leaking out and television anchors are at the forefront, most of them showing reruns of the Mirza confession. No widows or orphans of victims have been interviewed, as would have been the case in a normal (politically unbacked) crime. It is only with a confession such as Saulats that the dots can be joined. Till the confession only perception of the criminal activities was believed and spoken of in hushed whispers. Now the whispers are louder but the furtive glances are still there.
The Uzair Baloch statement coming on the heels of the Saulat Mirza confession has opened yet another dimension to the criminality of Pakistani governance. This time the target is Asif Zardari, the merry widower, who proved that one can marry above their station and thrive. As unpopular as Altaf, though not as dangerous, he has managed to reduce the PPP to its present, sad position where all the diehards have left and now the remnants of the PPP are casting about for an honest leader to hang onto. The Bhutto mystique, which had always been the mainstay of the PPP’s attraction, was sidelined by the Zardari stamp, reducing the Bhutto ‘effect’. This was done by using the stick of the state, whipping the party workers into line. The real romance of the Bhutto legacy was his leftist leanings. Nationalisation and ostensible hatred of the feudals was part of the plan.
Zardari, moving away from Bhuttoism, lost the leftist element in his following. Also, he tried to promote himself into the feudal strata where he has never been fully accepted. In political spheres, the political manifesto is the very foundation of a party’s belief or creed. If there is no manifesto, the party has no basic structure other than the persona of the leader. Zardari could not claim any great thoughts or actions. His background has left many speculating and commenting on his past, with many distasteful tidbits thrown in by adversaries and the people in general, constanty nitpicking his bygone days — as a cinema ticket scalper and then a deal maker. Enriching himself in the process, going from the nicknamed Mr five percent to 10 percent and, finally, to Mr 100 percent, ignoring the people, the voters and party. This behaviour has proved suicidal and the mood of the people reflects this disappointment. Again, the perception of Zardari being corrupt is now accepted as the truth, as is the criminality of Altaf. The perception has changed to the affirmation of a fact.
The remaining myth is the administrative ability of the Sharifs. The hype created by the PML-N, to fulfil the PR requirements of a political party, has been an effective tool but empty promises cannot be held out forever. Eventually the people will see through the charade and when the results are not forthcoming they will react. The Lahore riots, after the suicide blasts in two Christian churches, have shown that the attacks were focused on the Lahore Metro bus, which has become a symbol of the Sharif regime. This has not been missed by the army, and the PML-N will also come under scrutiny. The Model Town massacre will soon be revisited and appropriate criminal actions will ensue.
The writer is a freelance columnist