Pakistani Talk Show Off The Record 8 Sep 2010 with Kashif Abbasi: Exclusive interview with Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Chief Imran Khan who says he wants soft revolution (through ballot) and if that does not happen then a bloody one will automatically take place. Imran Khan talks about Pakistan floods and its impact present and future..

WATCH VIDEO: Balochistan Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Khan Raisani is seen making or recording a speech in which he says there is urgent need to revisit the 1973 Constitution.

The 2-minute video clip shows an incoherent Raisani struggling to speak, either because he was drunk or sick.

Before the Peoples Party elected CM could finish speaking, he is seen collapsing and guards around him reach out to prevent him from falling down. The camera is ordered to be shut down.

Nawab Raisani is on record having said that: A Degree is a degree whether it is genuine or fake doesn’t matter! WATCH the VIDEO and decide for yourself if Mr Raisani is actually drunk and can hardly speak or is sick and can’t speak. In either case Mr Raisani needs urgent help.

No mly coup seen, but Army calls the shots

MULTAN: The message in black Urdu lettering on a white sack of supplies for flood relief says it all: “In tough times, the Pakistan Army is with you”.

The powerful military has taken the lead in providing relief — dwarfing the civilian government — and in doing so has greatly enhanced its prestige and influence.

And while nobody expects it to take over, the renewed clout of the Army is perhaps the biggest political change brought by the floods, one likely to define its relationship with, and leverage over, the civilian government for years to come.

“The military has in fact expanded its interests through the distribution of relief aid,” said defense analyst Ayesha Siddiqa. “There is nothing today which does not fall within the military’s purview.”

The Army, which became deeply unpopular in the final years of former president Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a coup in 1999 and stepped down in 2008, had already clawed back considerable influence over foreign and security policy.

But in the flood relief, it has become very visible as the only national institution with the manpower, the organizational skills and the equipment — including helicopters and boats — to help some 20 million affected by the floods.

At a boys’ college turned warehouse in Multan, soldiers work round the clock to assemble packages of emergency relief. With leaves cancelled and rations donated to the cause, the sense of pride is palpable.

The commander in charge of the area has been on the go since the floods hit a month before, says Major Farooq Feroze, the officer in charge of public relations in Multan. “He is supervising each and every movement,” he says. “He keeps us all alert. He himself is sleepless.”

That is in stark contrast to the sluggish response of the civilian government, and the departure of President Asif Ali Zardari on a visit to France and Britain when the floods began. Technically, the Army is working on the orders of the government, and at the operational level, civilian and military authorities are working together closely.

“There is cooperation going on at every level,” says Brigadier Zahid Usman at a field turned helicopter base in the town of Jampur in south Punjab. “We know where they are going; they know where we are going.”

But the subtlety of that message is often lost in a country where much of the media is sympathetic to the Army and where security officials grumble privately about the failings of democracy and the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).

KEEPING GOVERNMENT ON BACK FOOT: The army has no incentive to take over when the country faces so many problems, and it also benefits from having a civilian face authorizing military operations against Taliban militants, for which public support is essential, analysts say.

One security official noted that the situation was considerably better than in Afghanistan, where US-led troops are trying to defeat an insurgency by military means, without the political infrastructure needed to win over the people.

“There is a government here,” he said. “It’s not ideal. It has great room for improvement, but it is functional, working and in power legally. It’s better than the political dispensation in Afghanistan.”

Yet at the same time, the Army is in a stronger position to call the shots if the government is seen to be weak, and to deflect any attempt by civilian authorities to limit its power. According to defense analyst Siddiqa, the Army was deliberately stressing the inefficiencies of the government to keep it, and Zardari, on the back foot. “It is not because they want to get rid of him, they want to send a message,” she said. “It’s more of a warning shot right now.”

“This is almost like pre-poll rigging. Let the government serve its term. You destabilize it and keep it destabilized.” The next election is not due until 2013 and the main opposition leader, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, has shown no inclination to try to take power. He also has reasons to be wary of the military — he was ousted in the 1999 coup.

But in the meantime, some officials speak privately about the possibility of a realignment among political parties to weaken Zardari, who cannot be dismissed by constitutional means. In the absence of a coup, therefore, the only way to weaken him would be if the PPP itself were either split or sidelined through a rebellion by political allies and opponents, or possibly even through a vote of no confidence in the government.

In a country rife with rumor and conspiracy theories, it is impossible to predict exactly how the politics will play out. What is clear, however, is that the popular refrain in the last years of Musharraf’s rule — that “the worst democracy is better than the best dictatorship” — has lost its sheen. And the Army, which has ruled Pakistan on-and-off since independence in 1947, has been able to present itself again as the savior of the country. Or as a banner says on one of the colorfully painted trucks packed with relief supplies: “The Pakistan Army and the people are together”.

PKonweb Report

Mutahidda Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Altaf Husain on Sunday renewed his call for revolution led by the poor and the middle-class to rescue Pakistan from the clutches of feudal lords, corrupt politicians and plunderers of national wealth.

He was addressing a large gathering in Karachi over phone from London in connection with the campaign of MQM’s social welfare Khidmat-e-Khalq organization to provide relief to the flood-hit people in the country. KKF is said to have so far distributed aid worth Rs250 million, it has been reported.

Hussain said feudal lords and corrupt politicians had enriched themselves through various means including waiver of hefty bank loans over the last six decades, built factories and also acquired assets abroad.

He said his critics could not block the looming change. "A revolution is coming and it will be unstoppable," the MQM chief said, urging citizens including people in the armed forces to support such a movement.

Hussain said when people of all provinces were ready for bringing about a revolution, he would ask the MQM Rabita Committee to remove restrictions to allow him to return to the country to join the mass struggle. Altaf holds dual nationality and has been refused Pakistani passport six times, he said in an interview on Geo last week.

His revolutionary statement is drawing strong reactions from rivals, particularly the main opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N). When Hussain first made a call last month for martial law-like steps against feudalism and corruption, the Punjab-based Nawaz party went on overdrive. His unlikely supporters included IMran Khan of PTI, Syed Mushahid Hussain of PMl-Q and the Pir Pagara from Sindh. Most recently, Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali threw support behind change while appearing on Front Line on Saturday.

A war of words has been underway between the MQM, a partner in the Pakistan People’s Party-led ruling coalition in Islamabad and in the southern Sindh province, where MQM has wide electoral support in Karachi and other urban centers. Influx of IDPs from Sindh worries MQM, say some political commentators, as it would change the demography and the dynamics of Karachi, Sukkur and Hyderabad politics, they contend.

PML-N leaders accuse the MQM of seeking military intervention, which the latter denies. Meanwhile, PPP remains silent on the issue as its coalition-based government stands on the brink of collapse.

In his usual fiery style, Hussain refuted allegations against him and said the expenses for his stay in London were being borne by the party. "I have not accumulated any wealth and I do not own any properties or palaces like others," he said.

He added that those who were worried with his statements about revolution would be more worried when they hear of his return.

"The government had not prepared an effective solution for the flood crisis," said Altaf.

He also said that, those with influence breached the embankments and caused harm to the locals, and called upon the judiciary to take action against the people responsible for breaching the dykes (bundh) for personal benefits.

He told the office bearers of MQM not to make new clothes for themselves instead provide clothes to the children of flood-stricken people on this year’s upcoming Eid.

“I desire no presidency, premiership or any other seat of power for myself, all I want is that the downtrodden section of the society must get its rights,” Altaf Hussain reiterated.

Altaf suggested two weeks back that “patriotic generals” should step in to lead the country in such a crisis, a reminder that he could cause the government to collapse if he chose to pull out of the coalition.” PPP refuses to be drawn into the argument saying the matter should remain only a debate while they concentrate on flood relief efforts.

Pakistani officials, diplomats and aid workers warn that while civil unrest has so far been averted, the aftermath of the worst-ever flooding in Pakistan could destabilize the country in the months to come and aggravate the already deep regional, sectarian and class fissures, the New York Times reported today.

Pakistani Tal Show In Session with Asma Chaudhry 5 Sep 2010: MQM Chief Altaf Hussain discusses revolution again today saying only a revolution can replace the corrupt system being used in a merry-go-around way by the Jagirdars, Waderas and the corrupt politicians. Should it be Bangladesh model or Pakistan model?. Guests: Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed (AML), Waseem Akhter (MQM), Asma Arbab Alamgir (PPP), Pervaiz Rasheed (PML-N), Ijaz Jakhrani (PPP)

The Election Commission of Pakistan has summoned four parliamentarians, including two federal ministers, on Monday in connection with the fake degree issue.

These four parliamentarians are: Federal minister for livestock Mir Humayun Aziz Kurd; Federal Minister for postal services Israrullah Zehri; Member of Khyber Pakhtunkwa assembly Gulistan Khan and member of Balochistan assembly Shama Pervin Magsi. Zehri is the same lawmaker who is on record having said honor killing of women is “part of Baloch culture”.

Failure to show by Monday will result in unilateral action against the members of the parliament, stated Election Commission (ECP) spokesman Afzal Khan while speaking to the media on Saturday.

Federal minister for livestock Mir Humayun Aziz Kurd and Federal Minister for postal services Israrullah Zehri did not appear before the election commission on 30th of August, even though they were formally asked to do so under the rules.

Member of Khyber Pakhtunkwa assembly Gulistan Khan and member of Balochistan assembly Shama Pervin Magsi also failed to appear in front of the Election Commission panel investigating the fake degree issue.

Dr. Ghayur Ayub

When everybody talks of a change; the change becomes imminent. This is the law of Nature. Today, every other person in Pakistan is aspiring for a change. Mass psyche translated as ‘Zubaan-e-Khalq’ (public dialect) is equated with ‘Naqaraa-e-Khuda’ (Divine beat) by wise men. Even the President declared, ‘Pakistan will emerge stronger after flood tragedy’. The question is how. Will it be in the shape of a revolution? After all, revolution comes from a Latin word revolutio, meaning “turnaround”. This, in a way, points to a fundamental change in power or organizational structure. Aristotle described it scholastically as two types; complete change from one constitution to another; and a modification of an existing constitution.

Here comes the point of interest for us in Pakistan. In a broad term, the change could be, “any and all instances in which a state or a political regime is overthrown and thereby transformed by a popular movement in an irregular, extra-constitutional and/or violent fashion” On the other hand, in a narrow term it could be “a revolution which entail not only mass mobilization and regime change, but also more or less rapid and fundamental social, economic and/or cultural change, during or soon after the struggle for state power.”

The frustrated public of Pakistan are looking forward to either of them, while the educated influential are hoping for the ‘narrow’ version. But, both groups do desire a change. Maybe Mr. Altaf Hussain was also talking of the latter. Scholars like Jack Goldstone studied it in three major approaches: psychological, sociological and political. They saw the cause of revolution in the state of mind of the masses, and while they varied in their approach as to what exactly cause the people to revolt, they agreed that the primary cause for revolution is the widespread frustration with socio-political situation. Others saw, disequilibrium in resources, demands and subsystems in a society that cause revolutions. While still others saw it as an outcome of a power struggle between competing interest groups According to them the revolutions happen when two or more groups cannot come to terms within a normal decision making process in a given political system, and simultaneously have enough resources to employ force in pursuing their goals. Jack Goldstone further defines it as “an effort to transform the political institutions and the justifications for political authority in society, accompanied by formal or informal mass mobilization and non-institutionalized actions that undermine authorities”

Keeping these scenarios in mind and seeing the flow of various disasters hitting Pakistan indicate that something ugly is going to happen. For example, Mother Nature has shown its anger in the form of devastating floods. The custodians of the government are against the public by showing their oblivion towards their basic needs. The political stalwarts in opposition have not shown muscles to favour what the poor of the society really want. The judiciary seems helpless implementing its orders. The law and order is at the lowest ebb bringing sectarian, ethnic, linguistic and political groups face to face taking their revenge. The frustrated public is taking law in their own hands and show their rage by brutal killings of innocents in front of the law enforcers. To top it all, the crash of an aeroplane next door to the most sensitive areas of the country, producing suspicious theories and the stars of national cricket team putting Pakistan in a new corruption controversy.

So where does the society stand in all this? As pointed out by Orya Maqbool Jan in a talk show, the Quran talks about situation like this in Sura 6, Verse 65 in clear terms when God warns people that He, “is certainly able to pour upon you retribution from above, or from below your feet; or He can divide you into factions and have you taste each others’ tyranny.” We are confronting the one from above as devastating floods and faced the one from below in the shape of massive earthquake. That leaves us with the third peril. We are already fighting with each other in certain parts of the country. It is going to erupt violently at each nook and corner when over 30 million frustrated people take the law in their own hands and attack the elites of society on the streets, in their homes and in their offices. We have seen its rehearsal in places like Peshawar, Sialkot and Karachi. I am not talking about just a chaos in a society. It will be much worse than that. Some would call it a rebellion leading to a civil war; others would label it a revolution.

Looking at things from another angle, let us trace the incident which put the nation in its present situation and the state in a certain direction. One ‘NO’ by Ch Iftekhar on March 9th, 2007 turned out to be a turning point for the country as 9/11 was for America. Things started to change from then on. We saw the emergence of; a vibrant media; a strong superior judiciary; and awakened public willing to participate. The three became a Tsunami for the corrupt elites. If we had these three elements alive; the civilian or the arm forces custodians of governments in past would not have done to the country what they did when they held power. Both abused power, adulterating the resultant democracy and corrupting the already corrupt politicians. Not anymore. Pakistan is standing at the crossroad of a big change. That change cannot be brought by the already tested lot. Bloody revolution is knocking on the door. The only alternative to such a change is to have a national government composed of; honest politicians; the upright technocrats; and the competent civilians. Let them run an interim government for one or two years on the following principles;

* Cleanse the lower judiciary. The lower judiciary which deals with the public matters is still full of filth.
* Make an independent Election Commission having competent and honest judges. They don’t have to change the rules; all they need is to implement the existing rules. The corrupt practices which have been the routine in elections will disappear. We will get honest people coming to the parliament.
* Strict, fair and aboveboard accountability by judiciary, against those who misused their powers and looted the country; be that of NROs, Defaults, SROs or any other malpractice by present or past custodians.
* Let the army keep tackling terrorism and hunting the terrorists.
* Tackle the post-flood development projects with utmost transparency and competence. Let Pakistan come out as Germany and Japan did after devastation of WWII with help of the world community. The world is willing to help us; only they don’t trust our politicians and present leadership.
* The Media should not be gagged and let it flourish becoming the eyes and ears of the poor public.

The question is how an interim national government can be installed without flouting constitution. The constitutional experts tell us that it is possible under three conditions; by declaring emergency on the face of worsening law and order situation as a consequence of floods; by invoking clause 190 and asking the army to implement constitutional orders of the supreme court; or by calling for a referendum on setting up a national government. For the latter, only the President is empowered to give such a call. Would he do it? What is at stake for him, he won’t. That’s where the cases, especially AAZ holding two posts being heard in the Supreme Court become so pertinent. Instead of seeing the public lava erupting, the SC would tell the president to opt for one. Feeling the pulse of the public, the new president will go for a referendum.

The democracy in Pakistan needs thorough cleansing; otherwise, the raging lava of the public sentiments is going to erupt, which will burn everything in sight; the democracy; the corrupt politicians; the shady generals; the fraudulent bureaucrats; and most importantly the failed systems. It is utterly important to understand that the change is imminent.

(The article first appeared in the Opinion Maker)

K Ashraf

Pakistan does not need a revolution. What Pakistan needs is Democratic Socialism.

The magic phrase about any successful system is: Confidence. The confidence in a system comes from equality, justice and sustainability. Rest of it is just detail, the details of the system, the way the implementers of the system implement it.

Every Tom, Harry, Dick is calling for a revolution in Pakistan. Some condors of the current system are even calling for a bloody revolution which kills hundreds of thousands of people. The others are asking people to take over everything they can get their hands on.

The first kind of revolution is being propagated by Mian Shahbaz Sharif of PML N the other kind of revolution is being propagated by Mr. Altaf Hussain. One can imagine what kind of revolution it will be if it is led by either of them.

First, a revolution needs a revolutionary party and leadership to bring revolution in a country. Pakistan does not have both. Therefore, there is a remote possibility that revolution will ever take place in Pakistan.

The elk of people who are talking about revolution in their dreams are far off from the social, cultural, and political realities of Pakistan. They even do not understand the nature of the current economic system in the country. However, what they talk about in their sleeps is nothing but the symptoms of the economic disaster the country is facing.

For example, the corruption which everyone from TV show hosts, commentators, analysts and some of the politicians talk about is not the disease in itself. It is a symptom of a larger economic problem. Similarly, poverty is not a disease in itself, but it is a symptom of a larger economic problem. Growing violence in the society is not a disease in itself, but it is a symptom of a larger economic problem. Same is the case with other challenges Pakistani society is facing for a while now.

The bottom line of all these problems is a larger economic problem. What is that larger economic problem?

The current economic system does not enjoy the confidence of the people who live under this system. Anyone who thinks, the ruling elite have confidence in this system, he is sure seriously mistaken.

Today, Pakistan’s ruling elite is the most corrupt in the whole world. Why is it so? It is so because they do not have the confidence in the system. If they had confidence in Pakistan’s economic system they won’t commit corruption and stash away money and put in foreign bank accounts. They do it because they know this system can collapse anytime and they can lose every thing they have.

Poverty is growing at exponential rate in Pakistan. With natural calamities the growth rate of poverty has sharpened to dangerous levels. Sixty, seventy percent Pakistanis are living in red economic zones. From the red economic zone, I mean, the worst possible economic conditions.

Revolution is not the answer. Revolution is not the answer, because there are no revolutionaries in Pakistan. Those who would lead revolution in the name of revolution would not be any different than the current breed of rulers we have in Pakistan. They will be rather worse as they won’t have any clear vision of a workable system for Pakistani society.

Here we will not talk about the Soviet, Chinese or Cuban revolutions. They have had their own social, cultural, political and economic problems. Pakistanis do not need to go through all that to create a credible social, cultural, political and economic system.

What Pakistan needs is Democratic Socialism. From Democratic Socialism, I mean a system which brings required changes in Pakistan’s social, cultural, political and economic systems through concerted social, cultural, political and economic activism.

Pakistan needs to lead itself at fast pace to reform its social, cultural, political and economic systems to build confidence, widespread justice, create equality and sustainability in the system for every citizen of Pakistan.

Is it doable? Yes, it is doable and achievable? Who will do it? The current leadership, I doubt they have the ability or they understand the nitty-gritty of what Pakistan needs.

(The views of the author and the commentors do not necessarily reflect those of PKonweb. PKonweb reserves the right to remove or edit comments that are posted)

ISLAMABAD: Former President General (retd) Pervez Musharraf has sought permission of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for launching a new political party, the “All Pakistan Muslim League” (APML) from London on October 1.

A secret list of 52 top politicians of both the PML-Q and the PPP-Patriots has now been prepared, who would announce to join this new party to give a boost to General (retd) Pervez Musharraf before launching the party.

One of his loyalists, Barrister Saif has submitted relevant documents to the ECP on behalf of General (retd) Musharraf to get the new party registered. The registration of the party is now pending with the ECP where progress on the case is very slow.

Ch Shujaat Hussain and Ch Pervez Elahi will not join the new party yet in the first phase. The sources said that the Chaudhrys sent a message to General (retd) Musharraf that because of the Bank of Punjab case, they did not want to annoy Asif Ali Zardari and Shahbaz Sharif.

Top inside political sources have claimed that Pir Pagara and the MQM are being given top priority in the new political set-up as General (retd) Musharraf is said to have completed his homework in the last six months after meeting his comrades in Dubai and London.

The sources said that General (retd) Musharraf had invited his loyalists to a convention in London on October 1, when he would launch the “All Pakistan Muslim League” (APML). A large number of media persons are also being invited by him to cover the event from London where he would also give interviews to journalists.

The sources said that Barrister Saif was getting the party registered and afterward he would invite Pervez Musharraf to become its president. The sources said now General (retd) Musharraf was waiting for issuance of NoC for his new party as the rest of the arrangements were complete.

When contacted by The News, Advocate Fawad Hussain Chaudhry, who is a close aide of General (retd) Musharraf, confirmed the launching of the political party. He also confirmed that Barrister Saif was getting the party registered with the ECP. But, he said that the NoC was not being issued because the ECP had not the required number of members right now.

Meanwhile, sources said that after long discussions with his political lieutenants in Dubai and London, a new political strategy was worked out to launch General (retd) Musahrraf in active politics amid fast erosion of credibility of corrupt politicians in the ranks of the PPP and the PML-N as their governments had terribly failed to deliver despite tall claims.

The sources said that after getting disappointed from Chaudhrys of Gujrat, now General (retd) Musahrraf had replaced them with Pir of Pagara, who was being given the task to bring all the like-minded politicians in the party.

According to the new plan, the All Pakistan Muslim League would have an alliance with the MQM after joining Pir Pagara who would arrange a party convention in Karachi where top leaders of the PML-Q and other like-minded politicians would participate.

As the second phase of his strategy, General Pervez Musharaf is getting ready to write long articles on four important steps he took during his government and was always criticized. He is planning to write articles and even give interviews on the Lal Masjid operation, the killing of Akbar Bugti, November 3 emergency and issuance of the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) to reply to his critics. Likewise, he would wait for the reaction of the public over his explanations and interviews before making his mind to return to Pakistan to join active politics. (News sourced from The News Intl).

Pakistani Talk Show Column Kaar with Athar Abbas: Altaf Hussain’s controversial statement; Sialkot brothers’ lynching and fake police encounters in Gujranwala, CM Punjab Shahbaz Sharif’s tacit approval in them; A look ahead into Pakistan politics and its future. Guests: Dr. Waseem Akhter (MQM), Orya Maqbool Jan (Columnist), Abdul Qadir Hassan (Columnist), Riaz Qadeer Chaudhry (Advocate)