Daily Times

Ascending to a prominent political role and sustaining it by an individual lacking hereditary privilege in a society based on predefined social roles and hierarchies with a complex power and cliental relationships cannot be an accident. It is an outcome of a combination of struggle, determination, intelligence and luck. Cronyism can allocate a position but to sustain and make gradual progress by proving one’s metal is a litmus test of sifting chaff from the grain.

To being with, the Yusafzais of Swat were divided into two factions after consolidating the occupation of the region in the 16th century to balance the intra-tribal power. Owing to this factor they preferred a non Yusafzai as the ruler of their state in 1915 and 1917.

After the merger of Swat State into Pakistan in 1969, the two power factions of the Yusafzais of Swat entered into two distinct political parties, the National Awami Party (NAP) and the Muslim League. The royal family and their associates joined the Pakistan Muslim League and their opposition mainly comprising the traditional Khans aligned with the NAP. The urban business class represented by Chacha Karim Bukhsh and Kamran Khan sided with the NAP.

Later, Z.A Bhutto’s PPP also made inroads into Swat as some members of the royal family joined it during its government as a strategic move to avoid the wrath of Bhutto and protect their lands and economic political interests. Even though the PPP attracted the downtrodden, the politics of Swat was dominated by the triad of the royal family, the family of Khan Bahadar and Afzal Khan.

In Shangla, at that time a sub division of the Swat District, Mian Saran Zeb Khan was a towering progressive Pukhtun nationalist, a contemporary of Ajmal Khattak and a leading figure of the NAP. Later on, due to political differences with Wali Khan he joined the Jamat-i-Islami that to date is a political oxymoron.

Similarly, in the Peshawar Valley the Nawabs of Hoti, Kaka Khels of Nowshera, Khans of Charsadda and Arbab of Peshawar, later on were joined by the nouveau riche Bilours, a business family dominating the politics of the province. Hazara, was a traditional stronghold of the Muslim League with strong political families and elites.

The exception of Amir Muqam, lacking an elite family background, emerged to challenge an established social, political order and hierarchies not on account of lineage but sheer hard work. Consequently, last year, he was elected as provincial president of PML-N.

“Politics is a dynamic process allowing change. If Nawaz Sharif can turn into a democratic icon with the passage of time, Amir Muqam belonging to a more traditional background can definitely hold his ground for pro people politics and power structure”

Belonging to a modest family of Mir Khel, a sub branch of Yusafzai, Amir Muqam hailed from the backwaters of Puran, a tehsil of Shangla District which was previously a part of Swat State till 1969 and Swat District till 1996.

Amir Muqam obtained his intermediate education from Jahanzeb College, the highest learning seat not only in Swat but in the entire Malakand Division. After securing first division in FSc, he subsequently graduated as mechanical engineer from the University of Peshawar.

Though his modest family background demanded Muqam to take up a formal career in engineering, he opted for a more challenging path of entrepreneurship. Fraught with risks, Amir Muqam decided to become a private contractor.

His college and hostel roommate, Sardarzeb son of Saran Zeb Khan recalls that his initial career as construction contractor was a testing phase of struggle and hard work. “He was an early bird and was in the habit of getting up at dawn. A challenging schedule did not deter him. In the morning he would be in Shangla but would appear in D I Khan in the evening.”

In 2002, luck smiled on Amir Muqam when Sardarzeb lobbied to recommend him for the ticket of National Assembly at the cost of his own brother, Fida Mohammad from Shangla. “I faced immense pressure and resistance from my family who were shocked at my suggestion. But not even for a minute did I regret my decision. Amir Muqam had shattered the established social and political status quo of not only Swat and the Malakand Division but the entire social and political dynamics of the Kyber Pukhtunkhwa,” recounts Sardarzeb.

But Muqam’s Musharraf patronage is often revived by his detractors to question his politics. “Politics is a dynamic process allowing change. If Nawaz Sharif can turn into a democratic icon with the passage of time, Amir Muqam belonging to a more traditional background can definitely hold his ground for pro people politics and power structure,” says Hazer Gul, a social and political activist and executive director, Islampura Cottage Industries in Swat.

Like Nawaz, Muqam also traded the thorny path of self emancipation to embrace the role of pro people’s politics. In the last four years he was the only force to challenge the tsunami of PTI in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by organising and leading resistance political mobilisations to protect the democratic system. Displaying leadership qualities, Amir Muqam expanded space for the Muslim League in a province ruled by the PTI.

He also proved his political metal and prowess by routing PTI to supplant Muslim League’s incumbency in Shangla and Swat. Both the district Nazims of Shangla and Swat belonged to the Muslim League!

Mohammad Ali Shah, Nazim of Swat was a PMLN worker from the far flung mountainous Miandam. He was selected by Muqam for the coveted position of district nazim and is constantly struggling to combat the daunting environmental, infrastructure and development challenges.

“Swat is a sensitive climatic zone with a population of nearly 2.2 million, but so far, lacking land use, comprehensive and integrated development plan with specific focus on meeting the environmental challenges. We also need to avoid the haphazard development monstrosities. I contacted experts for devising such a plan but there is a huge snag. How can we finance this initiative?” asks the Nazim of Swat, Mohammad Ali Shah.

Muqam changed the traditional political currents and dynamics, particularly of Swat and generally of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. He transformed the Muslim League from an elite club into a street force by maintaining direct communication channel with the workers without intermediaries. However, Muqam should keep it in mind that dictators can give powers but it is only the agency of people that can give respect and recognition.

The writer is a political analyst hailing from Swat. Tweets @MirSwat

Published in Daily Times, November 26^th 2017.