Democratic crusaders without a mandate

The murky abyss of Pakistani politics has been especially murky over recent months, and true to form it just keeps getting murkier8230; 8220;It has become imperative to move for impeachment,8221; barked Asif Zardari8230; Sitting beside the new head of the Pakistan People8217;s party was Nawaz Sharif8230; Zardari snarled every time Musharraf8217;s name came up, seething with political rage and righteousness, while Sharif did his best to keep up with the pace of things8230; But Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari are unelected. They8217;re not just unrepresentative in that they don8217;t hold seats in the parliament 8212; they have absolutely no mandate in Pakistan. They head the two largest, and most corrupt, parties in the state but hold no public office. Some 170 million Pakistanis have lived under military rule of law for nine years. Musharraf stepping down from his army post has not changed that. Neither did the recent selections. Sorry, I meant elections8230;

What does the government do when its country appears to be tearing apart at the seams? Go on the attack. Impeach the tyrant. 8220;The period of oppression is over for ever,8221; declared the prime minister, Yousuf Raza Gilani, at an event marking 61 years of Pakistani independence yesterday. 8220;Dictatorship has become a story of the past.8221; Pakistan is a proud, resourceful, independent nation. We have options. Zardari is not an option. Sharif is not an option. The army is not our one and only option. The mullahs have not become an option yet. There are close to 200 million of us: I8217;m sure we can think of something better.

Excerpted from a comment by Fatima Bhutto in 8216;The Guardian8217;