He came, he spoke and he conquered, but left before completing his mission, whatever that mission was.
In a short span of four weeks, Dr Tahirul Qadri over shadowed and achieved what seasoned politicians have not been able to accomplish in their lifetime. He succeeded in mobilising his supporters and a large number of citizens from all walks of life, to join his Kafila and march to Islamabad with him and demand a ‘Change’ in our system of governance.
He opened our can of worms and exposed our corrupt and decadent political structure that have eaten away the foundations of Jinnah’ Pakistan, stating that he has come to save Pakistan and its 180 million citizens, who have become dispensable pawns in the hands of the corrupt and dishonest politicians.
He vowed that he would not leave the Capital until he has dismantled the existing political system and asked the government to resign, otherwise he and his supporters would STORM Parliament House and remove them by force.
The government tried every dirty trick in the book to thwart the March, including an attempt to ‘BUY’ the good Doctor, by sending the country’s leading ‘Wheeler and Dealer’, but the Merchant of Lahore was rudely insulted and unceremoniously asked to leave, with egg on his face and hat in hand.
These hurdles failed to stop the determined Dr TQ and his marchers and they were prepared to face all hardships, even threats of terrorist attacks. It took his tsunami 36 hours to reach its destination and the Kafila entered Islamabad at 2am on January 15. And it was heartening to see a sea of white and green flags of Pakistan, instead of the usual party flags.
However, his short address to the huge crowd of men, women and children, who had braved the cold Islamabad night, was disappointing. The Doctor once again challenged the government and gave it a 24-hour ultimatum to pack their bags and hand over the reigns of government to an Awami Parliament.
But he made up the next day and in a three hour address to the chanting, but disciplined crowd, he announced his 4 point Charter of Demands and warned the powers that be, that his Kafila would not leave until these demands were met. He also asked the huge crowd to remain peaceful and pledge that they will not desert him until their mission was completed.
His source of funding and timing to launch the march a few months before the elections had raised many questions and his detractors had accused him of having a hidden agenda and being planted by the Hidden Hands to derail the elections.
But he has always been insisting that he has no personal, political or hidden agenda and the objective of his march was to demand Change in our system of governance, something that we have also been demanding for many years and the sudden end of the March proved that there was no sinister agenda.
And while he was addressing the huge crowd outside Parliament, the Supreme Court of Pakistan released a drone, in which the PM of Pakistan was the target. And as a seasoned religious leader, he was quick to capitalize on the order to arrest the PM on corruption charges and announced, to the delight of his followers, that his Mission was half-complete.
One has to admit that Dr TQ is a fiery orator, who speaks with conviction and passion and has the ability to play on people’s sentiments, by mixing politics with religion in his address.
And on January 17, after a three-hour address, Doctor Tahirul Qadri presented his four-point Charter of Demands and gave the government forty five minutes to comply, failing which, he and his supporters would storm Parliament House.
Initially, the government and the opposition had jointly rejected his demands, claiming that they were unconstitutional and undemocratic. But then better sense prevailed and sensing the danger that the Doctor could pose for them, all insults and derogative remarks were forgotten and the government capitulated.
Twelve of the King’s men, including some opposition leaders, rushed to his bulletproof bunker to negotiate a DEAL. After five hours, an agreement was reached and the Islamabad Long March Declaration was signed with the very government that Dr TQ had accused of violating the Constitution and had asked to resign.
No doubt, a no-win situation had been reached, in which the main sufferers were women and children. As such, there was a need to end the impasse and avoid a confrontation.
But what was inappropriate was the jovial manner and the hugs and kisses in which the Declaration was signed and that too with the very persons who had mocked and ridiculed Dr TQ and had accused them of misconduct and corruption.
The sudden u-turn has tarnished the credibility of Dr TQ and the Declaration has raised a number of questions and objections.
Many citizens have expressed their regret and disappointment, especially of using women, children and religion to promote the march.
One had hoped that the winds of change from the Arab Spring, which had finally reached the shores of the Pak and the Pure and the fire that Dr. TQ had started, would turn into a forest fire that would to sweep across the nation and bring the much needed change. Instead, it was extinguished by the rains and the cold weather of the Margalla Hills.
For 65 years, the citizens have been betrayed by hollow promises of “self above” leaders, who have made a mess of things and a mockery of democracy. We now need a sincere government that is of the people, by the people and for the people.
So the question is, will the Declaration succeed in establishing such a government or was the four-day High Noon drama just another ‘mukh-mukao’ between the Doctor and the government? Check and Check Mate – Mission Completed - Game over.
And as the song by Annie Lennox goes: “Don’t mess with a missionary man. He’s got God on his side. He’s got the saints and apostles backin’ up from behind. He’s a man with a mission and got a serious mind”.
May God save Pakistan from the hollow promises of ‘Self Above All’ leaders and missionaries.
(email: trust@helplinetrust.org)