Election Blues: Who's doing what?
Ijaz woos Mullas: Bureaucrat woos Tickets:
Alliance woos Leader: ISI woos All
By
Abdullah F Khan
ISLAMABAD:
Ijazul Haq, the rich, talented son of the former military dictator
Gen Ziaul Haq, is out to form another right wing political alliance.
Don't be surprised if our bearded Mullas soon happily receive Ijaz
in their fold. After all, defeated and angry over the way the present
regime has dealt with them in the post Taliban period, they want to
add some voter appeal to their outfits. Will Ijaz be able to come
up to their expectations, is any body's guess.
Jamaat-e-Islami
Amir Qazi Hussain Ahmed, our moles say, has already given a green
signal to Ijaz to become sixth component of the five party right wing
religious alliance. But insiders say that Ijaz seems on a mission
to bring closer the hardliner religious Mullas and the present military
regime which is an ally of the US-led coalition forces that have launched
a "Crusade" against the Taliban and their Al-Qaeda allies,
now on the run. Sure an uphill task, but the religious zealots could
create some room to accommodate the US friendly military ruler if
his intelligence sleuths give them assurance that they would be friendly
with them in these crucial pre election days. The SA Tribune had reported
last week that Musharraf was secretly negotiating with the Jehadi
elements for his life.
Maulana
Shah Ahmed Noorani, a spent political force, who once enjoyed respect
among the majority Sunni sect of the country, seems in a compromising
mood with the regime. After all none of his disciples waged a holy
war against the Americans in Afghanistan, which was largely fought
by men belonging to the Ahle Hadith or Wahabi sects.
The second
Mulla who seems to be in a compromising mood, is Maulana Sami ul Haq,
the head of his own faction of the Jamiat Ullema e Islam. Famous for
his links with the Taliban of Afghanistan, Maulana is an old player
of Pakistani politics and knows how to compromise. Recently, the Maulana,
in an interview to a TV channel opened up on the issue of cooperation
with Gen Musharraf, simply demanding that if the President gets rids
of the anti-Islam elements around him, his party would support him.
What a demand!
He is
a talented Jat of Punjab, who has set his eyes on the chief minister's
slot of this biggest province of the country for the last 15 years.
He is accommodative, quiet, calm but shrewd. He is the younger Chaudhry
of Gujrat, Pervaiz Elahi, the former speaker of the Punjab assembly
and now president of the King's Party, PML-QA. Ever since the dawn
of the "democratic martial law", Pervaiz assumed the role
of being more loyal to the King than the king himself, and this strategy
seems to be paying off. In a crucial meeting two months ago, Pervaiz
Elahi was declared as the most favorite candidate of the regime to
become the next chief minister of the Punjab. Ever since, the whole
administrative machinery is literally obeying his orders.
Pervaiz
knows how to win over old enemies or rivals. Take the example of the
present chief secretary of the Punjab province, Mr Randhawa, a compulsory
Pervaiz Elahi-hater. Ordered by the chief patron of the Chaudhrys
of Gujrat, the principal secretary to the President of Pakistan, Tariq
Aziz, to behave, Randhawa has started supporting Pervaiz. Don't be
surprised to know what Randhawa got in return. One National Assembly
ticket of the King's party for his daughter and one Provincial Assembly
ticket for his younger brother. The deal is not bad!
Ch Pervaiz
Elahi and his patron and cousin Ch Shujaat Hussain may even make it
to the provincial and national assembly respectively without even
going to the polls. Both the Chaudrys have central Punjab Gujrat area
as their strong hold from where they have been returning to the national
and provincial assemblies during the last two decades.With Monday
as the last date of filing of nomination papers, a few will come to
know that Ch Pervaiz Elahi, the most favourite Punjab chief ministership
candidate of the regime, might be declared, unopposed from Rahim Yar
Khan, where he has got one Makhdoom Ahmed Mahmood, district Nazim
and a feudal landlord and a rich man of the area, in a position to
deliver Elahi this constituency. Ch Shujaat Hussain, is said to be,
interested in Bhakar, a remote area of western Punjab, where the big
land lords and feudals control the scheme of things. And with administration
and police, district nazims and above all political managers of the
regime, on their side, the Chaudrys could make it.
Imran
Khan, the cricket hero turned politician, is definitely finding it
hard to get acquainted with the ground realities of the Pakistani
politics which revolve around wealthy feudals, power hungry generals,
heady bureaucrats, and submissive but corrupt politicians.
After
facing a crushing election defeat in 1997, Imran seems a changed man
who vowed to rid the Pak society of these elements, but is still trying,
though in vain. His hopes that the present military rulers would nab
the corrupt, went down the drain when in the last August local bodies
polls, the King's Party comprising the elements who left the former
premier Nawaz Sharif immediately after the military coup, was patronised
by the rulers and clinched majority in the most populous province
in the country, Punjab. Imran was frustrated. He did not succumb to
the orders of the intelligence sleuths of the regime who wanted him
to behave, and exposed the whole game plan, accusing the principal
secretary of the president Tariq Aziz of favoring the King's Party,
the PML-QA.
That
was not the end as during the last one year Imran is having an unsure
and unpredictable love-hate relationship with the present regime and
its agencies. Not so long ago, he blasted these agencies again when
he refused to be part and parcel of the politically naive, but government
sponsored, National Alliance that has in its fold one former caretaker
prime minister, Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi and a former president, Sardar
Farooq Ahmed Leghari.
Both
are desperate to become the next prime minister. So Imran's refusal
is still annoying the political managers of the regime. They tried
to pin him down recently when Leghari opened up against the cricketing
hero accusing him of being son in law of a dead Jew, late UK billionaire
Goldsmith. Imran responded angrily, accusing Leghari of being a corrupt
politician who looted the Mehran Bank with both hands. The row started
by the political managers of the regime, ended up with both accusing
and terming each other as corrupt and Leghari had to telephone Imran
one night to apologize and explain his position.
The famous
Pir of the Pakistani politics, Pir Mardan Shah Pagaro, is as unpredictable
as ever. Recently he surprised even the top bosses of the agencies,
who work as eyes and ears of the present ruler. The Pir in his scheduled
meeting with Gen Musharraf a few days back, presented to the General
a 300-page document, which contained in detail what he termed as political
blunders of these secret agencies. This was not the end. The Pir told
the surprised general on his face that his own agencies were making
his political and physical life short. The Pir did not hesitate in
telling the top general to patronize a new Muslim League, by forcing
all the big and small factions to unite under one banner. Our moles
tell us that this is now the immediate agenda item of the political
managers of the regime.
Why is
Qazi Hussain Ahmed, chief of the Jamaat e Islami , is reluctant to
accommodate Imran Khan in his fold? Our mole has revealed that Imran's
inclusion in the five party religious alliance, MMA, of which Qazi's
party is the major component, was discussed in detail in the Majlis
e Shoora of the Jamaat, but the majority opposed saying Imran's Jewish
links might annoy the religious vote bank. Too bad for Imran, but
efforts are still on to accommodate this cricketing macho.
Despite
Gen. Musharraf's assertions and claims that the next elections will
be free and fair, meetings between the King's Party bosses and the
top government functionaries are taking place almost daily. The most
important of these meetings the other day, was between the naive head
of the King's Party, Mian Mohamad Azhar, Ch Shujaat Hussain, Ch Pervaiz
Elahi and others at the Governor's House, Lahore to finalize the list
of the King's Party candidates. Chief Secretary Punjab, Home secretary,
and others were also present, brazenly to the surprise of many. What
were these top government functionaries doing in these meetings held
to finalize national and provincial assembly tickets? The answer is
simple. They devise strategies on how to bring in the PML-QA fold,
strong electables of the PPP and PML Nawaz group. They think this
strategy is working. The PPP backed Nazims of the Punjab as well as
in the others provinces have been pinned down successfully. Despite
having the vote bank that is to be tested in the coming elections,
they have left very few influentials or so-called electables with
the Nawaz group.
It will be interesting to know how the recent merger between the pro
government National Alliance and the King's Party, PML-QA took place.
It was done in 18 hours at a safe house owned by the top intelligence
agency of the country, ISI. The PML-QA top leaders were not mentally
ready for it and suspected the ambitions of the main force of this
alliance, former president of the country, Sardar Farooq Ahmed Leghari.
But the pressure from the top bosses of the premier agency made them
strike a deal with Leghari and company. The old man from Sindh, figure
head chief of the National Alliance, Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, could not
sustain the pressure of sitting at a place for hours and walked out
in protest. Leghari followed. But he went to bring back Jatoi. The
whole dispute revolved round the selection of the head of the grand
national alliance. PML-QA people wanted Mian Azhar to head it. Leghari
wanted to rule the roost himself. And the things ended up in a way
that the alliance was formed but it is still headless. What a way
to resolve issues!
The toothless
chairman of PML-N Raja Zafarul Haq is going to contest the next National
Assembly elections against Ijazul Haq, the president of his own faction
of the League. Raja, on the insistence of Ijaz-haters in the PML-N,
took this decision, which our mole says, Nawaz Sharif, did not like.
Why, because Nawaz wants to be friends with Ijazul Haq again who is
out there to malign his former party colleagues for being more loyal
than the king. Interestingly, Sheikh Rashid, who has been denied Nawaz
group ticket and has decided to contest independently from Rawalpindi
has joined hands with Ijazul Haq.
Mian
Mohammad Azhar, the dumb but proud Arain of Lahore, seems to be
running from Lahore but may also be shifting to another constituency
in nearby Sheikhupura, adjacent to the provincial capital where
his clan is found in abundance. Azhar decided to contest on another
seat after hearing that Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif or Begum Kulsoom
- in case they get permission from Lahore high Court to contest
elections - might face him in his constituency. He knows that in
case Sharifs are not allowed to contest, may be Hamza Sharif, the
elder son of Shahbaz Sharif, could be put against him. And Azhar
is not courageous enough to contest from one seat alone and risk
losing, ending permanently his chances of becoming the "future
prime minister" which our moles say Gen Musharraf will never
allow him to become.
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