Once more Mustafa Kamal, chief of the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP), breathes fire against his former associates; denouncing and exposing them left right and centre. This time around however, his former associates – especially Governor Sindh Dr. Ishratul Ibad – are fighting fire with fire, and the resulting inferno shows no signs of abating.
What started as a customary trading of barbs on Monday – initiated by Mustafa Kamal it must be noted – has spiralled out of control. Governor Sindh Dr. Ishratul Ibad on Wednesday termed former city nazim Mustafa Kamal “an incredibly dishonourable man.” While Mustafa Kamal responded by accusing the Governor of indulging in massive corruption during his 13-year-old rule and providing “oxygen to Muttahida Qoumi Movement (MQM) founder Altaf Hussain”. Both men accuse each other of corruption, disloyalty, murder, extortion and everything in between, and the only evidence they have is their own experience while working together.
Herein lies the crux of the problem, one that makes both outpourings of vitriol insignificant and each accusation a double-edged sword.
Mustafa Kamal was Mayor of Karachi from 2005 to 2010, a Senator from 2013 to 2014, while Dr Ishratul Ibad has been Governor of Sindh since 2002. As the saying goes, both men were once ‘partners in crime’ – loyal and integral members of the MQM. As such, each accusation against the other serves only to undermine their own standing; both men knew the other’s alleged illegal activities, both men stayed silent when they were friends and party members, and are now baring all when politics demands it. Each is irrevocably tainted by the actions of the other.
Both men now clamour for legal enquiries to either clear their name or incriminate the other, but none of this is expected to go beyond political bluster or a superficial inquiry commission – which is extremely unlikely considering past “expositions” by the PSP. Eventually this spat has to cool down, and life will resume as normal.
The only loser in this ugly confrontation is the citizen of Karachi, who now stands in the middle of verbal war with no tangible facts to grab on to. Each day the accusations escalate in gravity and clarity on the situation diminishes. With the PSP, MQM-Pakistan, and MQM-London – all shades and factions of the same political behemoth – in the mix, the fate of Karachi is in flux, with on easy resolution on the horizon.