Daily Times

The so-called democrats, self-serving parliamentarians and business-loving media advocates, failed en bloc, despite their combined efforts, to save a corrupt regime led by a leader who would always claim to be, and behave like, an innocent bystander.

Nawaz Sharif’s widely expected political demise must be blamed largely on his own self, then his amateur family members and extreme over-confidence in his ability to “manage” everyone, any institution, civil, judicial or military.

Though for now just one family has gone, the democratic train has not been derailed, yet, the conduct of the political elite has made the political system even more fragile.

The almost outlandish and stupid refusal of Sharif and family to perform, provide principled, ethical governance, admit facts, confess crimes and correct the course, provided huge space for other power centers to move in and play a dominating role.

Nawaz Sharif and family do not own Pakistan. But the subservient political class, acting as courtiers, made us believe he was the Emperor, though without clothes. These courtiers still have not learnt any lesson as they think Sharif will stage a comeback.

The ouster of the Sharif clan, and upcoming accountability under judicial supervision, was not a surprise. It is now the considered view of the judicial and security establishment that Pakistan needs a big correction of course.

“Across the board strict accountability, is inevitable, an absolute necessity,” one person who has seen the inner workings of important power centres, told me before the judgment was announced. Within hours came the blow giving a decisive push to a sustained and widespread round of accountability that will engulf all and sundry.

Interestingly when many-times-lucky Don of the Sharif family was booted out from power hardly a whiff of protest was heard. There was a deafening calm and a sense of relief all around, including the all-important security establishment.

While he was literally booted in his last two stints by Pindi boys, this time they intelligently stayed away and quietly, and rightly, gave confidence to the apex court to do what was right under the law.

The judges knew and wrote at length about the “circumstantial evidence” of his corruption, but they finally got him on a minor, but proven indiscretion: holding a foreign work visa.

While the Sharif family had been caught red-handed with hands, feet and neck in the billionaire’s cookie jar, the judges were divided until April 20 but not so on July 28.

Like all big Dons, Sicilian, Italian or even Israeli, Al Capone or Eitan Hiya, Nawaz was sent home on a relatively petty yet undeniable and confessed violation of oath and law. In every mind were the numerous cases of corruption, money laundering and accumulation of wealth, already referred for trial by the apex court.

Nawaz had begun his term by picking up cudgels with the army on key national policy issues — how to combat terrorism and relations with India. He wanted a soft approach on both these fronts and like the Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkish model, wanted to bring the army under civilian supremacy. That turned out to be suicidal.

On India Sharif showed extra-ordinary courage and defiance, inviting PM Narendra Modi to his Lahore home even after first attending and getting humiliated at Modi’s inaugural. He never mentioned the name of Kulbhushan Yadev, the terrorist caught by the army from Balochistan. He never came out strongly for the historic Kashmiri independence struggle in Srinagar. Nothing could have been more damaging for his rule.

He even showed the audacity to invite Indian tycoon Sajjan Jindal at his private home in Murree, keeping his discussion in whispers in a lawn to avoid being monitored and never disclosing what transpired. It was almost conspiratorial.

All this was highly annoying for the boys and others. The army registered only soft protests inside closed doors and allowed him to continue, probably anticipating that Panama papers will ultimately, and quickly, bring him down, through the constitutional process. Others shouted loudly but no one listened.

Whoever will succeed Nawaz, most likely his brother Shahbaz Sharif, will only be a stop-gap arrangement until the polls in 2018. But he would be a weak PM, himself facing criminal charges in courts as ordered by the SC.

Shahbaz is already considered close to the military so he will never take his brother’s line on India or want to become an Erdogan. His main task would be to keep his family and the party intact amid a plethora of criminal cases. With JITs and sleuths roaming all around the globe to look for hidden treasures looted from the country, Shahbaz would have a tremendously hard time to appear innocent. The family may not be able to claim sympathy or political martyrdom as details, proofs and court convictions come in weeks and months.

The accountability under rule of law unleashed with the unseating of the first family of politics from Punjab, will have to be extended to others, including the equally richer Asif Ali Zardari of PPP and the corrupt elements in the civil and military establishment.

This perception of handing down justice across the board will be essential for the top judiciary to counter the narrative of Sharif and his media cohorts that he had been targeted and victimized.

As the country is clamouring for such accountability which will keep politicians busy in saving their money and skin, the momentous task of running the country, keeping it economically afloat, watching out and responding to the serious regional and international realignments on the world map, will by default fall in the lap of others.

There is an immediate need for all sane minds to sit and look beyond petty politics. The challenges looming across all our borders and in major world capitals have to be understood and proper responses formulated.

Someone has to take up this job to keep Pakistan from being damaged fatally. It has to be done here and now, either by responsible politicians, if they have the capacity to see beyond their nose and act in the national interest, or anyone who can deliver.

If no one takes charge, the remote will become the main instrument of control.

The writer is a senior Pakistani journalist Email:shaheen.sehbai@gmail.com, Twitter: @ssehbai1

Published in Daily Times, July 31^st 2017.