New
Sindh Chief Minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim: Another Dummy?
Sindh Needs
a Drastic Political Cure, Not Dummies
By
Shafqat Mahmood
LAHORE:
Finally the Chief Minister has been made a scapegoat for everything
that is wrong in Sindh. The hapless Mr Mehr was unsuitable from
day one but to put the entire blame on his ample but inept shoulders
is stretching it a bit.
Why
is it not understood that Sindh will remain troubled until a compact
is reached between the two major communities, Sindhis and Mohajirs.
And this can only happen if the PPP and the MQM agree to bury
their unhappy past and work together.
The
Establishment is not helping in this. It keeps oscillating between
hating the MQM or the PPP. These days MQM is the favorite, and
PPP is in the doghouse. In the early nineties the ire was against
the MQM with the army launching a full-fledged military operation
against it. This party was also accused of planning something
called Jinnahpur. Now all is forgiven but not to the PPP. Even
after winning election after election in Sindh, it is constantly
being forced into the Opposition. This is not a recipe to cure
the problems of this troubled province.
What
is particularly disturbing is the widespread perception in the
province that Punjab is somehow taking away its share of the water.
We know this is not true but how do you convince the people of
Sindh? The hatred against Punjab is growing without any basis
in fact but that does not matter. Perceptions as we know are the
reality in life and politics. The grass in Sindh is getting pretty
dry. Even a small spark can start a dangerous fire. Is anyone
thinking or worrying about it?
This
is where the role of national parties becomes so important. By
definition such parties have support in all the provinces of the
country and can help to counter negative perceptions. The other
day I was paired with a young Sindhi MPA of PPP in a TV discussion.
When she started to blatantly mouth anti-Punjab sentiment, I asked
her pointedly whether this was the official policy of her party.
Since
it was not she was at a loss of words. Parties like the PPP cannot
afford to take rabidly provincial positions, however much their
support may emanate from a particular province. This is the reason
why national parties keep ethnically and linguistically diverse
states together. But how to teach this to our rulers?
Can
anyone argue with the fact that if Sheikh Mujib’s Awami
League had equally strong support in the West Wing, the country
would never have split apart? And this would be equally true if
the PPP had support in the East. Nations are bound together by
popular will, reflected through the political process. It is not
kept together by force of arms. At least not for long.
Everyone,
including military men would recognize this in intellectual discussions
but the practical reality is that it is not internalized or fundamentally
accepted. Because if it was, the inherently destabilizing nature
of military rule would be acknowledged and something done about
it. More often than not, personal interests or the desire to hang
on to power takes precedence over what is good for the nation.
If
politics were to flow freely, MQM and PPP would have found a way
to coexist because neither of the two communities can be wished
away by the other. The Establishment keeps upsetting the possibility
of a political dialogue by becoming an unnecessary third player.
The parties, and in this case MQM, do not have to think of political
compromises because the present scenario is supporting. Is it
so impossible to imagine that this must be deeply hurtful to the
Sindhi people?
Military
rule warps political priorities in more ways than one. Take the
issue of contaminated water that continues to kill people not
only in Sindh but also in other places. Some time ago it was found
that villages around Lahore had high calcium content in the water
that was leading to bone deformities. I am told that water around
Rawalpindi and Islamabad has severe impurities and is essentially
unfit for drinking. Let us stretch this a bit further. How many
of us feel comfortable drinking tap water in any of our cities?
Yet, the provision of clean drinking water finds a much lower
priority than missile systems that can hit all parts of India.
Some
would argue that this is not a zero sum game; that providing clean
drinking water to the people is as important as providing security.
And that missile systems, with a reach of a thousand miles, are
equally important. I may be totally naive but would someone tell
me why is it necessary to spend billions to be able to hit Madras?
Is the ability to destroy Delhi and Bombay not enough? But then
I am not a strategic thinker.
I
only know that we have limited resources and putting money in
unnecessary missile systems or in an early warning system, which
is hugely expensive, does impact things like clean drinking water
or roads, or schools or health care facilities.
It
has now become a cliche to say that security does not only come
with weapon systems. Even military people recognize the broader
concept of security but in practice it does not quite work as
neatly as in discussion groups. When push comes to shove; and
in this case push and shove are related to the budgetary process,
the narrow concept of security still gets a lion's share of resources.
Every
extra rupee spent to enhance a narrow concept of security has
what the economists call opportunity cost. It is money that could
have been spent taking care of something as basic as clean drinking
water or a hundred other essentials for a poor deprived people.
Misguided
people like me keep saying that the time has come to re-evaluate
our national priorities but nobody seems to listen. One indulgence
of power is to consider anything not palatable as naive and innocent,
or if sufficiently provoked, as anti national. These comfortable
perceptions of the rulers do not change reality.
Sindh
is a running sore and needs a drastic political
cure not another military dispensation. This is the essence of
our security and must be recognized. Equally, national security
has to mean a better life for the people or the society will implode,
that is break up from within. Will somebody listen?
The
writer is a former cabinet minister and an ex-senator based in
Lahore. EMail: smahmood@lhr.comsats.net.pk
