This is Our Last Chance

THERE are as many views on the Muslim  League's landslide victory in the general elections as there are political pundits in the country. I met a few of these birds and I want to share their wisdom with you. So here we go.

          Pundit A: Sirji , there has been no rigging. How could there be electoral wrongdoing when Mohtarima Benazir Bhutto  herself was Mian Nawaz Sharif 's chief polling agent?

          Pundit B: I do not agree with Pundit A Sahib. There was massive rigging but the People's Party itself masterminded this rigging. The Muslim  League could not have swept the polls without wholehearted support from the PPP .

          Pundit C: I want to confine myself to Imran  Khan. In one single innings, he got out in all the eight possible ways you are obliged to return to the pavilion. One can be bowled and he was. One can be declared out leg-before wicket, and he was plumb in front. One can be out caught bat, and pad and he was. One can be caught behind or elsewhere, and he was. One can be sent back for obstructing the field, and he was. One can be out stumped, and he was. One can be out hit-wicket, and he was.

          Pundit D: When the PPP  government  was dismissed in 1990, the establishment had decided that Benazir Bhutto  should not be allowed to stage a comeback. She was not permitted to do so. When Mian Nawaz Sharif  was sacked in 1993, it was not the intention that he be allowed to return. He could not. The third referee (in his case the Supreme Court) ruled that he was not out but when he resumed batting, he was run out. Again when Mrs. Bhutto  was given the marching orders in November last, the establishment had no desire to recall her. There was no error of judgment either in 1990, in 1993 or in 1996.

          Pundit E: In my view, the deciding factors were the councillors whose local bodies had been sacked by the Moeen Qureshi caretaker government , especially in the Punjab . They worked overtime to get their own back.

          Pundit F: Benazir Bhutto  is responsible for losing her vote inheritance in the Punjab , which was, together with Sindh , Bhutto  territory since 1970. But she provincialised the whole thing by saying again and again that while the Lahori  (later Punjabi ) Prime Minister  had been restored, the Larkana (later Sindhi) PM had been ditched (by the Supreme Court).

          Pundit G: The PPP  has been reduced to a skeleton of its former robust self, but it still is only the second party, which has representation in all provinces. And although it is way, way behind the PML  in the National Assembly , it is still the second largest party there.

          Pundit H: the large audiences carried Imran  Khan away at his public meetings. He failed to realize that most of his supporters were too young to be voters.

          Pundit I: The rural voters in the Punjab  decided to say ' no' (As they did in 1970) to their feudal lords and masters, and took their lead from the urban bourgeoisie. And in Sindh , too, the urban Haq Parasts  may strike a deal with the rural winners.

          Pundit J: This is a mandate for 15, not five years, for Mian Nawaz Sharif ; provided he gets down to working honestly and efficiently.

          Pundit K: This is a fearsome mandate. It is almost a democratic dictatorship much after Jawaharlal Nehru's fashion in India . The PPP  has only 18 seats in the National Assembly  and the PML  can get away with blue murder. I hope it won't because if it rides roughshod over its opponents, it will be undermining the democratic structure (such of it as we have).

          Pundit L: Lahore  has rejected the PPP  thrice in a row. It was in Lahore that the PPP was born in 1967. Today, 30 years later, the talaq  has been pronounced thrice. Talaq , talaq , talaq . Parting of the ways. I shouldn't but I do want to cry. (I told him that pundits did not cry; they only punditificated but his eyes were moist).

          Pundit M: What is all this talk about Ehtesab ? There are reports that 83 legislators-elect, most of them belonging to the PML , may face disqualification because of discrepancies in their tax and asset returns. If there really are so many disqualifications, it will mean that the February 3 elections are void. Will a fresh reference be made to the will of the people? What about the uncertainty that will result?

          I fear that Ehtesab  is another name for keeping parliament subservient under duress. The President  must recall the Ehtesab Ordinance forthwith. This is Pakistan 's jubilee year. Let there be jubilation all round. The people have virtually voted in a government  of national consensus. This consensus must not be tampered with under any pretext. The president  must give democracy a chance. And, mind you, this is the last chance we have of surviving as a democracy.

          As for the People's Party, this should be introspection time. A great deal of soul-searching is required. There are already demands that Mrs. Bhutto  should quit as chairperson of her party. Ironically, however, she is the PPP . If she goes, the PPP goes. It will disintegrate in no time at all. The central executive committee of the party has rejected the election results, but decided that it will not resort to agitational politics " for the time being ."

          What is this? It is simply not possible for the PPP  to take to the streets. It has to regroup its forces before it can even think in these terms and this regrouping will take time, a lot of time. And what should Mr. Nawaz Sharif  do? It is too early to advise him as to what to do and what not to do. For the time being, let him remember what happens to politicians who fail to deliver after receiving such a massive mandate.

Friday, February 7, 1997