In the wake of the revelations made in the Panama Leaks and the campaign of the opposition parties against the Prime Minister and his sons in regards to ownership of the off-shore companies and their demand for his resignation to pave the way for a probe by a judicial commission under the serving Chief Justice, the statement made by the COAS on across the board accountability and subsequent announcement concerning removal from service of military officers on charges of corruption, did create ripples on the political landscape of the country. Political parties immediately picked on it and construed it as an endorsement of their stance against the government. Echoes of a similar response from the government were also heard. Nevertheless, it also evoked some negative fall-out as questions were raised about the accountability of the military dictators, especially General Musharraf and those who were involved in wrong-doings in the past. A question was also asked, was General Raheel capable of holding them all accountable for their misdeeds?
Whatever the motive behind his indiscretions, it certainly backfired. Whoever advised General Raheel to make those moves, acted un-wisely. There is no denying the fact that most of our politicians have indulged in reckless corruption exploiting the inbuilt avenues of corruption in our system of governance and the military dictators have also taken this nation for a ride. They not only indulged in corruption themselves but also showered undue favours on their cronies and those who helped them to prolong their power stints. Across the board accountability means accountability of military dictators, civilian rulers and holders of public office without any discrimination under the same law. One would have welcomed if he had said that there should be across the board accountability of all the military and civilian rulers (past and present) and a permanent National Anti-corruption Commission should be formed to probe into cases of corruption committed by all of them and recommending punitive action against them, under the same law.
The opposition parties who are salivating to have a dig at the Nawaz Government, particularly PTI, by focusing only on the family members of the Prime Minister have also exposed themselves to a flak about their misdeeds and corruption rackets, though most of the people are already aware of the corruption done by the politicians. The media of late, has been reporting about loans that Jahangir Tareen got written-off and the concealment of the value of flats owned by Aleem Khan in London. Many stalwarts of PPP are under investigation for corruption and above all their co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has a reputation of being the most corrupt man in the land, though it is really difficult to convict such people due to the defective system of dispensation of justice. Stories about wealth stashed by him in the Swiss bank are still resonating among the masses. Same is the case with politicians belonging to other parties against whom cases of corruption have been reported. A number of them are already under investigation in NAB. There is a proverb those who live in glass houses should not throw stones at others. They all, indeed live in glass houses.
The rejection of the Judicial Inquiry Commission proposed to be formed and the TORs announced by the government, by the opposition parties, clearly indicates that they are not interested in across the board accountability and they all are after gunning the Sharif family, which by all means can be likened to a witch-hunt. The government, by agreeing to their demand for Judicial Inquiry Commission and extending the scope of TORs to the written-off bank as well, in addition to probing the Panama Leaks issue, has rightly called their bluff. With the latest revelation that a second instalment of Panama Leaks is to be released on May 9, which according to the author of the report contains names of another 400 Pakistani businessmen, politicians and possibly some generals, it has become all the more become necessary to widen the scope of the inquiry to bring to book all those who have resorted to accumulation of wealth through illegal means and reform the system to plug all the avenues of corruption.
Imran Khan who is the most vociferous in holding the Sharif family accountable for the alleged corruption and leaves no opportunity to go by to rub in the notion of massive corruption by the Sharif family and their accountability, for the till now unsubstantiated allegations, is desperate to realise his dream of becoming the Prime Minister of Pakistan, by all means fair or otherwise. After the failure of his attempt to dislodge the government through a conspiracy which the former COAS General (Retd) Aslam Baig corroborated, rejection of his systematic rigging allegation by the Judicial Commission, the snub that his party received in the NA by-polls and the Local Bodies Elections, he feels that the Panama Leaks are perhaps the best ever chance for him to destabilise the government through agitation and creating chaotic conditions in the country.
My assessment is that he is terribly wrong in contemplating to have his dream fulfilled through such tactics. With all the vulnerabilities and shortcomings that the PML (N) has according to his perceptions, it is still the most popular party of the country and the majority of the people want the government to complete its tenure for not only strengthening democracy but also the continuation of the initiatives that the government has taken to check the menace of terrorism in its tracks, steps taken to tide over the energy crisis, strategies put in place for revival of the sagging economy and above all to capitalise on the lifetime opportunity that has come Pakistan’s way in the shape of CPEC, which requires peaceful conditions in the country.
Imran’s idea of holding a sit-in at Raiwind in front of the private residence of the Sharif family not only indicates his frustrations but is also a bad political strategy. In a democratic dispensation, the opposition parties have the right to hold demonstrations and protests against the policies of the sitting government to press for their view point but it is never ever done by besieging the family houses of the Prime Ministers or holders of the public office. My advice to him as well as other political parties would be to revisit their stance on the Panama Leaks and engage in a dialogue with the government in regards to finalization of the TORs as the government circles have already shown flexibility on the issue. To settle national issues, engagement is the name of the game. It is also the best opportunity for our political class to wipe off the stigma of politics of self-aggrandizement and reinforcing their democratic credentials and their sincerity of purpose, by agreeing to a wider scope of inquiry.