Bottom Line
Musharraf's deal with Bhutto: A case of political opportunism
IN politics, everything is possible, if it is not based on principles. Politics, of course, is all about power. Power is a possession, and like any possession, one is determined to retain it. Power is the great treasure that you often cheated another to have, especially through a military coup. Power makes everything else possible.
President Musharraf's deal with his political foe, Ms. Benazir Bhutto, a former prime minister, is an instance in retaining power regardless of what it costs the nation. The president wants to be remembered as the saviour of Pakistan, but his frequent political manipulation for clinging to power will not help him achieve that.
President Musharraf, when he took power in October 1999, made sure that suspected corrupt former prime ministers would be punished so that they could never repeat their bad governance with corruption. The government pursued Benazir for the illegal money she acquired during her tenure as prime minister, and stashed away in Swiss Banks.
Initially welcomed as an anti-dote for the corruption that had plagued the previous governments of Ms. Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, President Musharraf, in his autobiography, In the Line of Fire, writes critically:
"Never in the history of Pakistan had we seen such a combination of the worst kind of government -- or, rather a nearly total lack of governance -- along with corruption and plundering of national wealth."
President Musharraf departed from his criticism of Bhutto and her government simply because he wanted to be re-elected as the president. If he had to honour the principles of honesty, he would have not provided amnesty to Ms. Bhutto. Let Ms. Bhutto clear her name in the court.
Ms. Bhutto, on the other hand, always told her countrymen that Musharraf was a military dictator, and during his regime Islamic extremism has plagued Pakistan. Bhutto has been calling for democracy in Pakistan from exile, where she has lived in style and splendour, whether in England or in UAE. Her personal "stinking" wealth is a sharp contrast to the conditions of the poor in Pakistan.
The new political situation has changed their tunes. Power is an addiction and a magnet, and hardly anybody sacrifices it or shares it. Greed and power replace principles of honesty and integrity. Both President Musharraf and Bhutto have shown that they are eager for power.
President Musharraf, being unpopular with broad segments of Pakistan society, has been re-elected as president with the support of MPs of Bhutto's party. Initially, the intention of her party MPs was to boycott the election by resigning from the parliament, like other opposition MPs did.
Ms. Bhutto initially opposed his re-election bid in the outgoing assemblies of which the President had won control in the last election, widely believed to be rigged. She dropped her demand because, to her, amnesty from corruption charges was most important so she could return to Pakistan. Is it not a reflection of her implied guilt of corruption?
Ms. Bhutto's prime interest is gettting rid of corruption charges against her so that she can participate in election in January, and the deal does exactly that. That means her personal interest reigns supreme over national interest, many commentators have said.
Ms. Bhutto's deal with her political foe, dictator General Musharraf, is possibly one of the worst unprincipled political deals ever made by a politician in Pakistan. General Musharraf found Ms. Bhutto willing to retract her opposition in return for amnesty from corruption charges. That was the bait for Bhutto, and she readily swallowed it.
The interesting fact is that the President granted amnesty to all politicians who were involved on charges of corruption from 1988 to 1999, except for former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, whom he ousted in the 1999 coup.
Musharraf positioned himself as a moderate-minded reformist and won admiration for economic growth by aligning his administration with the US on war on terrorism. The US pumped about $10 billion dollars to his administration, that led obviously to economic growth.
Disillusionment set in later, as the president clung to two positions, president and army chief, although he had assured the Commonwealth Secretary General in 2004 that he would resign from the army post. That did not eventually occur in the interest of what he claimed as "national security." This implies that he cannot keep his word as the president of Pakistan.
In March, the military president demonstrated his dictatorial power by suspending the Chief Justice of Pakistan, which is contrary to the constitutional provisions. That was the last straw in stunting judicial independence. Eventually, he did not succeed because the chief justice was re-instated by his own peers in July. The president had to eat humble pie, and it was a severe blow to his standing and power.
There is an external factor behind the deal. Media reports indicate that the US and UK put pressure on the president to agree on a deal with pro-Western Bhutto so that Islamists could not get to power. They do not want the Islamists to have their hands on nuclear weapons.
Another question is: does it bring political stability in Pakistan?
Although the president has been re-elected, the result cannot be announced by the Election Commission until the decision on his eligibility to be a candidate for the presidency is decided by the Supreme Court. That means a Damocles' Sword is hanging over the president. If the Supreme Court decides against his eligibility, no one knows how the president will react.
Some observers say it is likely that, with the support of the armed forces, he may declare martial law and suspend the Constitution to avoid the ruling of the Supreme Court in the interest of "security" of the country. In the new scenario, he may not resign as army chief. The result is, back to square one.
As regards Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party, many within the party fear she has damaged her standing by dealing with unpopular military President Musharraf.
This is more so when another former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, did not compromise with General Musharraf, and within four hours of his return to Pakistan on September 10, he was exiled to Saudi Arabia, where he has reportedly been put under house arrest.
In the eyes of many people in Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif, politically, stands ten feet taller than Benazir Bhutto. At one stage, both Sharif and Bhutto had agreed to conduct a united campaign for restoring democracy in Pakistan. But when president Musharraf indicated a deal with Bhutto, she jumped at it.
Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto again have become political adversaries, and each has a disliking for the other. While Sharif comes of a rich mercantile family of the Punjab (where 60% of Pakistan's population live), Bhutto's family have been feudal landlords in Sindh. In the months ahead, political polarisation is inevitable in the country, and the divisions between Musharraf and his political foes are sharpening every day.
It is reported that Nawaz Sharif might arrive in Pakistan after Eid ul Fitr, once the president is re-elected. No one knows how the political situation will develops in the January election. Shafqat Mahmmod, a former Pakistani Senator turned political analyst says: "All I see ahead is instability, difficulty and problems" in the country.
For many in Pakistan, Bhutto's compromise with President Musharraf is a frightening political development, and it means giving priority to personal interest over the country's interest.
Honesty is a virtue in public life. What an impoverished Pakistan it would be if everyone sacrificed principles for personal interest like Ms. Bhutto, who professed democracy in the country.
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