Nov 3, 2007
According to Benazir Bhutto will be considered as the blackest day in the history of Pakistan. After going through her opinion in "New York Times" November, 7, 2007 issue, I was obliged to jot down certain facts that the former leader of the state of Pakistan missed out.
November 3rd, 2007 is certainly not the blackest day in the history of Pakistan as there have been blacker days in the past. Pakistan Army has always felt obliged to set up a military coup on every democratic government of the country. It must be noted that when a senior officer in the army intends to disparage a humble soldier, he calls him a "bloody civilian". The people of Pakistan have never had a taste of true democracy even when they had democratic leaders over their heads. Whether it was Benazir Bhutto (who won the elections twice in the past by accumulating "sympathy votes" over the inequitable execution of her popular and gallant father Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto), or Mian Nawaz Sharif, none have been able to alleviate the inconveniences of the common man. Both the democratic leaders that have been mentioned above have filled up their bank accounts out of the "National Treasure" of the state, and then have either fled the country, or have gone under self-imposed exile.
Benazir Bhutto ardently and repeatedly brings forward the incident of the bomb blasts in her rally on 18th October 2007 upon her homecoming, but when the Minister of Railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed asked her to donate at least $165,000 (around one coror Pakistani rupees) to each of the 139 of her die-hard supporters who lost their lives in the unfortunate event, she totally refused the suggestion on the basis that it was the responsibility of the government of Pakistan to help the victims. It must not be forgotten that Benazir Bhutto has $1.5 Billion worth of assets.
It is certainly the responsibility of the government to take care of such issues, but if Madam Bhutto is aware of the fact that President Musharraf is a dictator and Army seldom thinks of the welfare of the civilians then why didn't she prove her worth as a democratic leader by donating a diminutive revenue out of her gargantuan bank accounts to the bereaved families of her die-hard supporters, who are also called her "Jiyala's". It is also true that the swarms that were present to welcome her at the airport had been gathered from all corners of Pakistan by the local leaders of PPP (Pakistan People's party) for a meager sum of money. In the live coverage of ARY Digital, (a Pakistani news channel) when the reporter asked a layman why he was present at the airport, he went blank and started floundering. Six to seven hundred rupees for singing and dancing in front of a caravan, is not a bad deal for poverty stricken Pakistani citizens. And who doesn't strike a favorable deal; madam Bhutto has struck one with the military dictator President Musharraf. Then ironically she speaks of improving the quality of life of the children and families of Pakistan.
I am also unable to fathom the logic behind her request to involve the FBI or Scotland Yard to assist in the forensic investigation of the blasts in her October 18th rally. There have been numerous bomb blasts in the country prior to the assassination attempt on Madam Bhutto, but when the government of Pakistan has never involved foreign agencies in their investigation, then why should the chairperson of the Pakistan People's party expect the government to take special steps for her?
The 3rd of November might be a black day for other political leaders, but not for madam Bhutto, because when all democratic forces of the country are either under house arrest or are banished, she is conducting high profile meetings with the presidency, or in her own words, with the implementer of the "mini-martial law". According to a well-reputed English Newspaper of the country "The News", PPP members have confirmed one such furtive meeting on Monday 5th November 2007.
People of Pakistan yearn for a true leader, and a true leader is the one who arises from the masses. He/she knows how it feels to force oneself to sleep with an empty stomach, he/she knows how it feels to save up money to buy second hand clothes from a second hand shop and what it is like to live in a house without electricity in the scorching heat of summers. The people of Pakistan neither have an interest in a leader who shops from SAKS Fifth Avenue, carrying Louis Vuitton bags in their manicured hands and who can't even speak the national language "Urdu" with a proper accent, nor are they interested in the senseless and piteous leader Nawaz Sharif who like President Bush is vain without a razor-sharp advisor. Fortunately or unfortunately, President Bush has Condolezza Rice beside him, but Nawaz Sharif has no one.
