Karachi has remained an aggressively sought after city for various political powers and has had its fair share of influence on provincial and national politics at large. The city’s politics has largely been ethnicity-cantered with each party aiming to speak for and represent their particular ethnic group and constituency. Despite the political battle, only a couple of political parties managed to dominate the cosmopolitan battlefield.
The once proclaimed city of lights, in its present state subjected to poor governance, compromised law and order, and lack of political representation cries out for ownership and seeks the attention of power corridors to overcome the spreading waves of neglect and pessimism among its dwellers. Whereas poor governance and instability in law and order always roamed around, the lack of political representation and ownership comes particularly amid the divide of Karachi’s single largest party, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).
The differences between MQM London and Pakistan chapters erupted when MQM distanced itself from Altaf Hussain.MQM Pakistan, being headed by senior political leader Dr Farooq Sattar, however, also could not hold on to the singularity of the party locally, and the MQM Pakistan further broke down into two groups: the PIB group led by Farooq Sattar and the Bahadurabad group which is led by Khalid Maqbool; and this further divide has broken down the party’s vote bank across the board.
Like it or not, let us admit the undeniable fact that MQM not only proved itself as a political power but also emerged as a vocal representative for the city and its problems. Although it rose as a representative party for Urdu speaking community, MQM soon took charge of the city and rose above ethnicity, broadening its horizon to represent other ethnic communities as well.
Other major political entities in the city include Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Awami National Party (ANP), and Jamat-e-Islami (JI). Although these parties can win a good number of seats from the city (particularly from their ethnic/religious strongholds), none of them has been able to establish their repute as a representative of Karachi, its people, and its problems as a whole.
While these parties are still there, the vacuum created in the political sphere of Karachi with the divide of MQM is very much visible and likely to impact the future development and sustenance of the city.
No party, as of now, is interested in the most populous city of Pakistan
The real concern here is not the fall of MQM, but it is the ignorance, and lack of attention to fill the political gap in the city shared across the board by all major political players in the country. While the entire country is gearing up for the 2018 general elections, we have not witnessed any major political activity in the city of lights until now, other than the PPP exhibiting its political muscle in Liaqatabad. The Chief Minister of Punjab, and now the President of the ruling PML-N, Mian Shahbaz Sharif, visited Karachi and addressed a few gatherings there. However, his presence was merely a critique of the PPP, rather than engaging the public.
No party, as of now, is interested in owning the most populous city of Pakistan.
Change is always better, but only if it is for good. Those political parties which criticised the MQM must now take charge of Karachi, and that can only be achieved through democratic means. The political vacuum created by MQM’s divide is an opportunity for all major players to not only engage the Karachiites but to win over the hearts and minds of the people by sending across a clear message that Karachi matters to Pakistan. Rest assured, those who score their political points in Karachi will definitely come up strong in the overall political picture post general elections 2018.
The writer is an Islamabad based freelance opinion writer and columnist for Pakistan Today
Published in Daily Times, May 12th 2018.