Last month, the high court in Lahore, Pakistan, demanded that the federal government provide a detailed and itemised expense report on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s recent trip to New York. This ruling followed petitions against the prime minister’s foreign trip, with charges that Sharif was abusing the national treasury by taking family members as well as personal servants on his international trips. Also added in the list of charges was that he was personally promoting his vast private enterprises during such trips at the expense of the state.
Fakir Ayazuddin, a Pakistani political analyst was one of those who were not amused by what was deemed excesses. In a harsh piece that was critical of Sharif’s recent trip to New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly, Fakir charged that “the Sharif brothers have learned nothing from their roughing up at the hands of the Imran Khan/Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri duo, nor the mood of the public. While his party and supporters were all in a panic, wondering when the axe was going to fall, Nawaz embarked on the US tour — blissfully unaware of the rumblings on the domestic front”.
Like some other Pakistani critics, Ayazuddin contends that the current government has not seriously addressed the shortcomings and issues facing the public. In his words: “The fears of the people are that the problems of public are not being addressed. Electricity is still in short supply and people live and study in the dark. Compounding all this is the water problem and of course unemployment that goes with industries being closed. Surely these are matters of national emergency. Five days in New York will not bring relief on any of these issues.”
Pakistan’s political landscape has recently been bedded by landmines and pitfalls and not many politicians can consider themselves safe or above criticism. The mood of the public has gone steadily sour as very little in the way of progress on critical issues like power shortages, crime and lawlessness is being addressed effectively.
Thus when Pakistani officials fly on political junkets, they cannot sometimes avoid the flak that follows from analysts and political foes. Calling Sharif’s trip to New York a colossal waste of time, Ayazuddin ridicules the idea that “our PM has taken with him his own cook, who will be serving the special dishes of Kashmiri and Mughlai origin known for their richness and cost. The contrast will be even sharper, especially with 120 million people living on less than $2 a day and watching their crops and livestock drowning in the floodwaters. No, this was a time to stay home and pinch pennies, not to indulge in Presidential suites and Mughlai dishes. Ignoring the devastating floods and unemployment back home is even more sinful than in times of plenty”.
Financial affairs
Ayazuddin makes no secret of his admiration for Imran, the chairman of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party that is demanding a series of disclosures from current and former prime ministers, relating to their financial affairs. As Ayazuddin says: “Fortunately for Pakistan, Imran has appeared on the political scene and in a few months has exposed the sleaze within the PML-N [Pakistan Muslim League — Nawaz] ranks. This has been compounded by the incompetence of the Sharif brothers and their reluctance to find people of merit.” In his well-defined discourse, Ayazuddin theorises that “in any company, if the quality of the employees deteriorates, then, surely that company will collapse. It is exactly the same with political parties. The quality of the members will define the success or failure of the party. A collection of gullu butts (vandals and thugs) can only hasten the demise, not prolong its life. It is a law of nature. The rotten will fail and then fall”.
In a direct attack on the prime minister’s election process, Ayazuddin is dismissive of the results. “The insistence of Nawaz Sharif to cling on to power, power that he managed to grab through means that are now being examined, is being found illegal. The courts must decide quickly and whatever law has been broken or tampered, the punishment must be swift and severe to prevent a bent politician from using political power to protect himself or his crimes. There are far too many political criminals on the loose. Plotting and making money through power is his most important goal. Removing this diseased part will not only bring about a new set of workers, but will rid the party from any people with ulterior motives from joining, or using politics as a springboard for making money.”
Such attacks have become more frequent in recent times, given the complexity of the issues facing Pakistan. There are many Pakistanis who claim to have the answers and reject the current set of leadership as being corrupt and self serving. Perhaps all this is an exercise in evolution — an evolution of the Pakistani political process.
Tariq A. Al Maeena is a Saudi socio-political commentator. He lives in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
