Dear Imran Khan,
As you embark on another journey to stage another protest, a march towards the palatial estate of Raiwind, I connect to you as a person with concern for Pakistan’s future but, more importantly, as a member of its middle class. For many of us, you have been the only alternative they have placed their bet on, but you are also not without your set of blunders.
When you appear, every afternoon, on our TV screens with a press conference against the corrupt elite, most know it in their hearts that you are mainly challenging a mindset, a rusting system. The aim is perhaps to keep knocking at the conscience of lethargic rulers enjoying their siesta. You often remind me of Bhuvan, the main protagonist in the film Lagaan, a simple villager embroiled in a cricket match against stalwarts with no knowledge of the game but a fire in the belly to win some respite for his people. While you have won us the world cup in cricket, the match you are entangled in the realm of politics is a different ballgame altogether. You may not be aware of all its rules but that is okay. Professionals built the Titanic while the ark was constructed by amateurs.
Your passion is admirable, you have placed yourself right against the villains of Pakistan and it is a formidable, uphill task. Many of us would have chickened out by now if we were in your shoes. Frankly speaking, if I were you I would have perhaps given coaching and commentary a serious thought and continued making easy money like Wasim Akram and Rameez Raja.
Mr Khan, I need to also remind you that power is a great seducer. Power transformed a humble student leader of Karachi University into a mafia-like figure who evokes fear and yet is also everyone’s Altaf ‘Bhai (brother)’. It can be an invigorating boost to the ego to hear party cadres and volunteers shouting slogans and forming a protective circle around you as you walk. However, a sea of bodies encircling a politician can often obstruct his or her view, and make him or her inaccessible to the public; sadly, the visual field next to you is permanently filled with familiar faces. People who were a part of a corrupt establishment of the past have become dear to you; remember, honey catches more flies than vinegar.
This has made many people lose heart; there are those who criticise you, those whose journalistic careers have been revived by pointing fingers at you repeatedly. And then there are the cynics, who I am afraid have been increasing in number lately. These are essentially former supporters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf who had high hopes from you, but lost their belief in you one dharna (sit-in) at a time. Time has come to reach out to them and address their grievances by reasserting your agenda, which may require doing away with all the unnecessary paraphernalia around your party’s mission. The party culture of dharnas, for instance, ought to be toned down, as it tends to dilute the seriousness of the matter at hand. During the Aazadi (freedom) dharna, we all remember swaying to DJ Butt’s music thinking the end of our suffocating world was here, and we were at the brink of some great revolution.
The middle class is an emotional lot that gets disappointed easily, so do not promise more than what you can deliver. The references to winning the world cup should be scrapped as well; fresh content ought to be pumped into your speeches as repetitive sentences like stagnant water often lose their purity.
Mr Khan, history shall remember you kindly even if a significant percentage of the population fails to see your intentions in their lifetimes. Pardon their ignorance, we probably don’t deserve you at the moment. This is a nation of morally bankrupt people, they don’t possess the acumen of respecting honest leadership because they have never been exposed to one before. Of all the topics that is discussed by us over cups of evening chai, Imran Khan being corrupt is never really a subject. Shaukhat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital’s contribution to healing the suffering parts of society is laudable, and your commitment to bettering lives of Pakistanis cannot be taken away from you.
Now is also the time to get back to the drawing board, minimising all political theatre and preparing for the next general elections in 2018. A majority of your diehard supporters are non-resident Pakistanis; give some thought to pushing for voting rights of Nicop holders. Waiting till last minute to capitalise on overseas vote bank may produce similar results as 2013. Living day to day is awesome but not having a long-term plan in place can jeopardise the future of many. Haste makes waste.
Sincerely, one from the crowd
The writer is a freelance columnist with a degree in Cultural Studies and a passion for social observation, especially all things South Asian. She tweets @chainacoffeemug