Daily Times

With mounting pressure on the government by the likes of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehrik (PAT), the political temperature has risen significantly. In this heated atmosphere, government sources are claiming that the proposed agitation of the PTI and PAT is an effort to derail democracy. On the other hand, the PTI and PAT claim this agitation to be their democratic right. More importantly, calls by Imran Khan and Tahirul Qadri asking the police not to obey the illegal orders of the rulers and threatening policemen with consequences if they do have been termed as incitement to treason by Minister of Information Pervez Rasheed. According to Mr Rasheed, asking government officials to disobey the authorities is a synonym for rebellion, and is similar to challenging the writ of the state and is an act aimed at creating chaos in society at large.

One hears Mr Rasheed and what echoes in one’s mind are the speeches Mr Nawaz Sharif made in the build up to the March 2009 long march for the restoration of former Chief Justice (CJ) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary. In those days, Mr Sharif would openly ask police officials to disobey government orders, and would proudly parade police officials who pledged to disobey the government. Ironically, back then, Mr Sharif and his party used to call their actions their democratic and constitutional right.

It does not end here. The PML-N is urging the PTI to use the forum of parliament for the redress of its grievances and concerns. Back then the ruling PPP would urge the PML-N to respect the decision of the parliament vis-à-vis restoration of the CJ. Mr Sharif and the PML-N opted to settle the issue out of parliament. In their days in opposition, the PML-N opted to settle quite a few issues, including the disqualification of Yousaf Raza Gillani, outside parliament. When it suited him, Mr Sharif opted to undermine the centrality and supremacy of parliament and the elected government. Most likely, the PTI will go the same route.

One looks at all this and wonders why our politicians never learn. Why are they bent on undermining the centrality and supremacy of the very institution from where they draw their strength — parliament? To answer this, one has to understand a few key aspects of Pakistani society and politics. Few of these are pretty obvious. For one, the lack of democratic rule in Pakistan has not let democratic traditions and culture develop here and it is only with time that the political class will acquire more maturity. Also, in the hope of having the blessings of a hidden hand, politicians opt for means that are not democratic. It cannot be a coincidence that Mr Khan and Mr Qadri have chosen to raise the political temperature at a time when there are visible signs of a rift between the Nawaz Sharif government and the army. Also, now it is evident that, more than principles, it was the urge to have a sympathetic power player in the CJ of the Supreme Court (SC) that drove Mian sahib’s march to Islamabad in 2009.

Beyond the obvious, there are a few other not so obvious reasons for these impatient, not-so-democratic tendencies among leaders and political parties. For instance, in the political culture of Pakistan, most politicians have not yet learnt to win over the voters on a realistic socio-economic agenda. This lack of agenda-driven politics leads to two things: one, their politics relies a great deal on maligning political opponents, especially the sitting government, and, two, in the absence of a realistic agenda, they have to rely on extreme positions and empty rhetoric. Both of these force politicians to take maximalist positions. And, in taking them, they paint themselves in a corner from where they are left with no other option but to resort to agitation.

Also, we are a society based on suspicion. Our first instinct about anyone we encounter is of suspicion. Therefore, the opposition suspects that any democratic government is bent on turning itself into an autocratic dictatorship. On the other hand, those sitting in the government view every trace of opposition as a malicious conspiracy to dethrone them. This makes them take actions, which further consolidate the suspicion of the opposition about the government’s nefarious autocratic designs, and the cycle continues. Thus, the opposition sees agitation as the only route to check the government.

Can this agitation and uncertainty end? My fear is that it is not likely. In this decaying institutional conduct, politicians will always be looking for strength from friendly quarters in institutions like the judiciary, bureaucracy and the army. The way forward for strengthening the democratic culture and developing trust is to have broad-based coalition governments where the collective interest makes political parties work together and learn to trust each other. However, with maximalist positions taken by most right-wing political parties, the emergence of such broad based coalitions is not likely in the present setup. Without ever realising what goes around comes around, the agitators will keep agitating when in opposition and keep urging restraint when in the government. It will remain the legacy of judges and military men, which will keep having more impact on Pakistan than the politicians.

The author can be reached on twitter at @aalimalik