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Journalism of Courage
So it8217;s a case of Pappu can8217;t dance. Or is it? Many, including General Musharraf, believe he has done all he could for his country, short of dancing to its unruly political tunes. At least, that was the impression the general gave in his long resignation speech yesterday as he enumerated his many achievements over the past eight years and ten months in power and implied that his country and its people were perhaps not worthy of him, after all.
It took Pakistan8217;s top commando nearly nine years to realise that he had overstayed his welcome. That8217;s food for thought in a country that has known little political stability since its birth. By finally resigning, even if reluctantly, Musharraf may only have saved Pakistan from further instability in the short run; that is, if predictions can be made on the basis of history.
Musharraf8217;s reign has been a reign of error, one after another. It started with high drama in the skies and ended with a reluctant, dragging drop scene under the media8217;s glare. He was received surprisingly well by the people initially; he could have banished Sharif, as he did, held elections and gone back to the barracks honourably. Then, over eight years later, he had another chance to step down with much more dignity on February 18 after the people had spoken once again, this time against him. He did neither.
The long list of achievements he enumerated as his last hurrah, in surreal contrast to his 1999 speech, sounded like it was a shower of all that was good and prosperous that came and went. It8217;s a shame that, despite his achievements as a once-popular leader and the face the world had come to know Pakistan by, he should have been his own undoing. The man was never the evil he had come to be portrayed as by his opponents, especially in his last year in office.
The imposition of emergency rule and the sacking of 60 supreme and high court judges on November 3, 2007 , and what followed was sheer madness. The doffing of his military uniform on November 28 was seen as a concession that came as too little, too late. By the time it happened, only Benazir Bhutto was able to claim the credit for forcing the general to do what he had actually pledged and fulfilled. The subsequent posturing of the presidency in the aftermath of Bhutto8217;s killing, the destruction of evidence at the venue and allegations by her party coloured the public mood until February 18.
Even Nawaz Sharif, by fixing blame on the president for everything, from bad law and order to insurgencies in Baluchistan and the north-west, the handling of the global 8220;war on terror8221; to inflation, the power crisis and staple food shortages, got quite a windfall in terms of public mandate. Musharraf had come to symbolise all that had gone wrong with the country by the time he was prevailed upon to bow out.
His legacy is ambivalent. The record economic growth in recent years, which averaged over 5 per cent in the aftermath of 9/11 in particular, will be a challenge to get back to and improve upon by those who follow him. It would help immensely to build upon the good the general did to society while he reigned and committed the many errors he did. There is no doubt that the opening up of society, building of industrial, urban and fiscal infrastructure, industrial and information technology developments and attracting foreign investment, for example, saw a boost under President Musharraf. The key would lie in doing what a leader pledges, and then leave himself to be judged by the people.
But is the ruling coalition up to the task? That8217;s the big question that will haunt Pakistanis in the days ahead. For starters, a lot will hinge on Asif Ali Zardari8217;s pledge to restore the higher court judges to their pre-November 3 posts within days of Musharraf8217;s bowing out. This will be the first test of the PPP-led coalition8217;s survival. The continuation of the fight against extremism or its cessation in the days ahead and tackling other socioeconomic challenges will make or break the coalition; it will not be able to blame any inaction on these vital issues on Musharraf any more.
The writer, an editor with 8216;Dawn8217;, is based in Karachi expressexpressindia.com
