Daily Times

It surely seems like the
federation has finally found its candidate for a perfect symbol of its unity in the president-elect Mamnoon Hussain. The 12th president of the Promised Land is poised to take the oath of office on September 9 and the incumbent who has been highly criticised in the last five years will perhaps have a much needed sigh of relief. Because when it came to the word ‘symbol’, he was more of a symbol of frustration for many than anything else. Every trick, every attempt, every possibility to dislodge and malign him was tried. Once termed as a ‘Man of Steel’, he truly proved his mettle with the test of time. Challenges after challenges, i.e. the NRO reversal, the Osama bin Laden killing, the alleged ‘memogate’, his heart ailment, the Swiss cases, the conviction of an elected prime minister; and the list goes on and on.
When you do a cost benefit analysis, one is bound to question: was it worth the trouble for President Zardari to become the president or not? The electronic and print media left no stone unturned when it came to his continuous bashing and has not relented to date. Actually a day without scorn or ridicule towards the beleaguered president is rare and it reflects the state of the ‘free’ and often ‘senseless’ media.
A veteran anchor and journalist once very rightly compared Mr Asif Zardari with the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar. One can wonder whether history will be kind to him or not, but one can say with relative sincerity that he will be remembered as the one who devolved the powers once wrongfully acquired by a usurper to where they rightfully belonged. At every step of the way, he renewed his commitment towards a process based on democratic norms. In return, he received scathing and unlimited criticism.
The rumour mill is abuzz on the social media that he will be headed towards the pearl of the Gulf, called Dubai, once he vacates office. And opinions are circulating about the sequel to the politics of the 1990s where ‘confrontation’ will become the order of the day between the two mainstream political forces. But for what it’s worth, according to credible news sources, the soon to be ex-president wants to focus on reestablishing his connection with the electorate as the co-chairman of a wounded and battered Pakistan People’s Party. This scribe has said this in the past and will repeat here as well that the PPP needs the infusion of brand new ideas and completely new blood. Although its chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is young, but he carries the baggage of being the so-called ‘heir’ to the throne. Let’s face it, it’s purely due to the unfortunate demise of his legendary mother that he has found himself under an unexpected spotlight. The party has been marginalised to be a regional player in the recent elections, and it requires a monumental overhaul to reinvent itself as the political party of the entire federation. Until or unless solid measures are taken to reinvigorate the masses towards a new vision, a new set of ideas, the party will dwindle towards extinction. The party cannot harp on the stale and outdated slogans of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s to rally its declining base because people can easily distinguish rhetoric from reality.
Getting back to Mr Hussain who is also being compared to the former President Rafiq Tarar and branded as a ‘rubber stamp’ president. Of course, what lies ahead remains to be seen. Worthy of mention is Mr Hussain’s ability to garner the unconditional support of Mr Altaf Hussain and his Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) in the presidential election process. As much as people criticise MQM for plugging along with anyone in power, this scribe considers it the most politically astute and savvy party when it comes to negotiations. This party is fully aware of its political strength and never shy of flaunting it at any given moment. Notwithstanding the position, most politicians find it prudent to go to the ‘blessed Nine Zero’ or if need be to fly to London to meet the ‘Supremo’. Anyone with a quarter of a functioning brain can analyse that when you have people coming to your domain to negotiate, you always have an upper hand and you negotiate from a position of strength.
What lies ahead is unknown but what is known so far is that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz will have a smoother ride as compared to its predecessors. As ceremonial as the office of the president may be, the overwhelming number of votes in favour of its candidate is another testimony of its strength. One has to smile and wonder at the naiveté of Mr Imran Khan, who decided to field a retired judge as a candidate for the office of the president, knowing or perhaps in his particular case ‘unknowingly’ that the former judge did not have the slightest chance. To cover his simplistic act he gave further clarifications, which made his stance even weaker. With the state of affairs in the province where his party has the majority being volatile, and most recently the jail break in Dera Ismail Khan, where the Taliban wreaked havoc by killing 13 and freeing 248 prisoners, one can easily hope that Khan will come to grips with the very grim and painful reality. There is a stark difference between dreaming of a perfect utopian world and living and breathing in the imperfect world the way it is, especially when it comes to our blessed land.

The writer is a Pakistani-American mortgage banker. He blogs at http://dasghar.blogspot.com and can be reached at dasghar@aol.com He tweets at http://twitter.com/dasghar