Daily Times

Nawaz Sharif maintains the entire world has started throwing implications on him for no fault of his. He claims he is a well-meaning human being. He thinks that if he does good things for everybody including his own self, there should be no problem? Here in Pakistan everybody has the right to look after their own welfare.

About three and a half decades ago, Nawaz Sharif’s fair complexion glowed like an apple of Kashmir when he descended into the thorny realm of politics. In fact, it was not his own choice, but was only a stroke of good luck, that the then khaki governor took a fancy to his good looks and inducted him in his cabinet as a young and smart minister. The khaki governor was a man of sterling character and could not be supposed to be myopic in the choice of his ministers.

Nawaz Sharif was known to be an average student in his college days who barely scraped through his exams. The few photographs of his younger days appearing in the local press reveal him wearing a fancy shirt and leaning over his shiny Chevrolet which he sported proudly before his friends. The Chevrolet meant a great deal in those days.

His craze for gaudy clothes and expensive watches was his favourite fad. He abhorred reading and writing and all kinds of drudgery and paper work. The only time he had perforce to take notes was when he had to address a joint press briefing with President Obama. Instead of being appreciated as an act of greater care and caution, he was made the butt of jokes by his adversaries for his vigilance. That only amounted to drive him further away from the clumsy practice of taking notes of any kind which he considers is essentially the duty of his flunkies in the lower echelons. Now he is aware that it falls far below the dignity of a head of the government to be doing such simple things.

In view of the problems we face today, we must ask ourselves,“what would have been the course of action of our Holy Prophet had he been present with us facing the same tribulations that we are facing today?”

An overactive media has caused quite a lot of mischief to the lives of common citizens. The other day, Nawaz Sharif was wary of the monotonous daily routine, was sitting in the evening with the close people of his party, and by way of relaxing his nerves was led to say, “If I have made my fortune by whatever fair or foul means, why is anybody else so concerned by it?” This, of course, is the only rational answer for a person who has drowned under their heap of countless accusations. But the media did not let it go which was only a slip of his bitterly stung nerves.

Then again, the media men, in the midst of the Islamabad ‘Dharna’ approached Captain Safdar, his son-in-law, and asked him what he had to say about the siege of Faizabad, to which came the curt reply, “It was all ‘Ishq’ (love) making its manifestation.” In the heat of emotions, he forgot that this ‘Ishq’ was weighing quite heavily on his ‘government-in-law’, but in the next breath he took another turn and said, “We are already ‘disqualified’, so what have we to do with this matter? Ask those who are ‘qualified’ to handle this rot.”

This indeed reflects the true thinking of Nawaz Sharif over this entire episode, which trickled out of the lips of his son-in-law, being their homespun gossip. Many people I know from close quarters, look good as long as they keep mum. Captain Safdar appears to be one of them. Hell seems to break lose every time he opens his mouth. He already lurks in the shadows of the Royal House, and he would do a lot more good to the family if he retreats into the anonymity which befits his status.

The thing that annoys me most in recent times is our growing intolerance and bigotry which runs counter to our religious teachings. We all love our Holy Prophet, being the highest model of perfection that ever lived on the surface of this earth. Thus ‘Hubb-e-Rasool’ is a matter of faith with us and as such no issue at all in our society.

If there is any issue in this context, it is that we don’t follow the golden precepts (‘Uswa-e-Hasana’) set by the great character of our Holy Prophet which to me is the main prerequisite for being a true Muslim, and about which our Mullahs are least concerned with.

In the face of our present-day malaise where we are fundamentally confounded about the right course of action we must take to avoid conflicts and thousands of ills damning our lives, can’t we choose to apply one litmus test by asking us: “What would have been the course of action of our Holy Prophet had he been present with us facing the same tribulations that we are facing today?”

I think any man with the slightest knowledge of Islam and imbued with the true ‘Hubb-e-Rasool’ would be immediately guided like the lightening from the sky as to what his ideal conduct should be. Would our Holy Prophet like us to block the roads and streets to perpetrate misery for countless people for no fault of theirs? Would he approve of hurling invectives and using filthy language against any person or class? Would he like the Mullahs to make inflammatory speeches spreading venom and hate against others and dividing Muslims by inciting them to violence? But who in the entire clergy is ready to think in that light?

On a lighter note, let me tell you an anecdote. During a live interview of Maulana Khadim Hussain Rizvi, leading the Faizabad siege, Mohammad Malik, a famous anchor-person asked him some searching questions at the Dharna site, which led the Maulana shout at him angrily, flashing contempt and disgust. Despite his best efforts, the Maulana refused to be pacified and vented his heat on the poor anchor.

The anchor clearly flabbergasted at this reaction, showed signs of feeling sorry for his question, at which the Maulana cast a victorious glance at the swarm of his disciples gathered on his right and left and loudly said, “Do you think that my disciples do not care to look at my needs and desires? Do I need to tell you what they have been doing for me? Should I show you what somebody has just slipped into my pocket?”

The anchor held his breath in awe. The Maulana then opened the buttons of his front shirt and groped his hands for something hidden in his under-shirt. Out came his hands fully laden with wads of currency notes of thousand rupees denomination which he joyously waved to the cheering crowd amidst chanting of ‘Allahu Akbar’. The poor anchor froze with awe and wonderment.

Why are there no Dharnas to protest against the number of schools in our rural areas? No procession is taken out to agitate against the lack of health facilities in our hospitals? no protest is staged against heavy foreign borrowings?

There are several other issues which have bedevilled our society and placed us on the lowest rung of prosperity in the comity of nations. Why is it that no Dharna is done to increase the number of schools in our rural areas, no procession is taken out to agitate against the lack of health facilities in our hospitals, no protest is staged against heavy foreign borrowings etc? It would indeed be a horrible nightmare to see a Maulvi spearheading such processions!

IN Lahore, the Orange-Line Metro Train project after costing more than $1.6 billion to the Exchequer was thrown to the winds on a court order as a result of which the hapless Lahorites were made to inhale tons of dust in their lungs leaving several dead and diseased till the five judges of the apex court after nearly eight months of deliberations (or silence?) reached the conclusion that there was nothing wrong with the project, a decision which in public interest could have been taken by the Honourable court on the afternoon of 17th April 2017 when final hearing had been concluded.

However, there may be some sound grounds (not known to the people) due to which the decision was kept pending for such a long time to the detriment of the general public when the work remained suspended causing disease, death and sheer unrest to the public and financial loss to the Exchequer due to huge escalation of prices.

The apex court however strongly criticised the LHC for “discarding the credible professional expert opinion and halting the project unnecessarily by arrogating to them (ie the LHC) the power to form their opinion against expert advice”. What is important for us to know in our peculiar context is that burning issues of daily life like this one do not make someone raise his or her eye-brows while non-issues conveniently drive the crowds to the streets and make life miserable for no conceivable or compelling reason?

The writer is a former member of the provincial civil service and can be reached at zafar.aziz.ch@gmail.com

Published in Daily Times, December 13^th 2017.