Departure of Musharraf

August 18, 2008

Shamas-ur-Rehman Toor

It is a historical day. Musharraf just resigned from the post of the President of Pakistan. He ruled over the nation of 170 million Pakistanis for nine long years and has finally left after an hour of his pseudo-emotional farewell speech - thankfully he got the opportunity to deliver one. The speech was filled with his so-called achievements – all what he did (or he thinks he did). He talked about macro-scale details (such as economic achievements, administrative reforms, and so on) as well as the petty stuff (such as ‘hotel occupation rate’ and irrigation channels). But he did not mention what he failed to do. He did not mention how terribly he failed to build Kalabagh Dam. He did not mention how miserably he failed to resolve the issue of Lal Masjid. He did not talk about how awfully he dealt with the issues of Blochistan and NWFP. He made no observation on how unsuccessful he was at handling the internal security. He also forgot to note his failures on the issues of national unity and sovereignty, the crisis of food, and the tragedies of power. Instead, he noted them as his successes. How innocent and naïve! Well, one can say that he did mention his ‘mistakes’ and asked for forgiveness from the nation. To this, I can not resist saying the famous Urdu adage: “iss saadgi pe kon na mar jaaye ae khuda”

But honestly, I wish Musharraf had resigned 14 months ago, after holding transparent elections, without sacking the Judiciary, and without imposing the emergency. Obviously one mistake leads to another and that is what exactly happened to this poor man. If he had done so, he would have left gracefully, probably listing himself as one of the respectful generals-turned-politicians. But that’s where the timing that matters. His reputation plunged during last 14 months after he unlawfully sacked the Chief Justice of Pakistan and then other judges of the Supreme Court. He thought he had become the absolute decision maker and power player. If given a chance, he probably thought to give himself this title: President of Pakistan, Chief of the Army Staff, Chief Justice of Pakistan, Chief Executive and Prime Minister of Pakistan, General Parvez Musharraf.

In his farewell speech, he pretended that he was not regretful about what he did. If that is that case, he must be living in ‘fools’ paradise’. Rather I would say that even fools would have realized the situation a year ago when Musharraf was orchestrating his own demise with his own hands. In my own opinion, while mentioning his “success” in his speech, he was only being stubborn and suffering from perpetual denial of ground facts and stark realities that the country and its people face.

It is also interesting that his ‘advisors’ and ‘friends’ just woke up and advised him to resign. How pitiful! They just realized that he should have resigned in the best interest of the country. They just recognized the state of circumstances. They just comprehended the severity and depth of the matters. They just understood the gravity of political affairs. Musharraf must have had some real ‘wise men’ in his circle who tactfully conned him at all times while he was ‘Mr. All-in-All of Pakistan’. They all knew that Musharraf is going to fall badly one day. But he himself was so much captured by the ecstasy of power and euphoria of nepotism that these sycophants looked like friends to him. The result is obvious. Everyone left him in the end. Even those he claimed as his personal friends and close political allies. He failed to understand the simple rules of political game. Everyone on his side seized the opportunity and benefited from the ‘self-declared’ political hallmark of the nation who seemed to have been whispered in his ears one single sentence all the nine years: “General Saab, you came, you saw, you conquered”.

I agree that he brought an economic hope; but not success nor a sustainable development. He did things with courage but without adequate calculation and meticulousness. His reckless political decisions were designs of his own downfall. His passion to take Pakistan to new heights is under no doubt but it was not well planned. Pakistan’s economic development during last five years was largely a consequence of the global trends. Pakistan received the fair share of the wave of global economic development. When there is a big earthquake, some little jolts are felt thousands of miles away. So is the case with economic development in the region which took place in China, India, South Korea, Thailand, and Middle East. What Pakistan received were tiny jolts of development. If Musharraf thinks it was his success, what can be said?

He stopped paying attention to media, disfranchised it from freedom of expression, that too in humiliating and tyrannical ways. How can we forget the attack on ‘Geo TV’ and how can we (the nation) forgive him for sending our own army to kill our own people. He did every possible thing that filled the nation’s heart with hatred, disdain, and despair. He seems to have never watched the television or read newspapers which so repeatedly published the photos of protests saying “Go Musharraf Go”. He seems to have brushed away the warnings of international media as well who frequently published the results of neutral polls about his popularity (and lack of it).

Instead of rectifying his ways, he went on writing a book of self-praise and elevated himself as if he were the emperor of Pakistan. What has done during nine years is the petty mathematics and statistics that he always talked, even in his farewell speech. Surrounded by all “yes-men”, he became a victim of nepotism, narcissism, and over-confidence.

Musharraf’s end is just another episode of an archetypical dictator. But his fall has several lessons for every leader out there. Musharraf has seen his appalling fall and that is how every tyrant and dictator of this world is ought to be destined. This is what happened to Musharraf and most of the other dictators who opted to rule until they forgot to respect others’ opinions and that the mantle of leadership has to be passed down to next generation and more deserving. Obviously, dictators don’t earn the respect; they just expect it without having won the hearts and convincing the minds. No doubt, a fist can scare you to keep silent but it cannot force you to pay you respect by heart.