Islamabad, Aug 29 (ANI): In order to fast-forward his ascendancy to the post of President of Pakistan, PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari has misled various stake-holders on different issues like restoration of judges sans deposed chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and that he was the unanimous choice of stakeholders for Presidency.
And, he bulldozed every other issue out of his way to grab the most powerful seat in the country, said an article written by noted journalist and group editor of The News, Shaheen Sehbai.
She writes that a grave threat perception is "fast developing in Islamabad's key power centres" around Zardari's attempt to occupy the presidency. "The concern is not about his political right to contest the election but about the way he has adopted, the tactics that he is using, the misleading claims, broken promises, petty politicking, unauthorised name dropping and other tactics to achieve his political ambitions," writes Shaheen after speaking to cross section of key stake-holders in Pakistan's political setup.
"I have it from the horse's mouth that Zardari had misled many of his political allies and partners by claiming that the establishment, which mediated and guaranteed many deals, had expressed serious reservations about the restoration of the judges, especially chief justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry. I have been clearly told there was no such reservation and never any one of any rank had interfered in the matter telling him what to do or not to do," she says.
"Likewise, the perception that 'everyone was onboard' with Zardari's decision to become the President was also not true as the subject was not discussed with key stakeholders, political and apolitical, causing irritation and concern among many concerned quarters," adds Shaheen.
According to her, one general view in Islamabad is that Zardari had suddenly put too many things on his plate and it was almost impossible for him to handle them singlehandedly. "This one man show cannot sustain, as one person cannot physically be the party head, de facto PM, de jure president, party strategist, economic czar, wheeler and dealer, manpower manager, political mastermind. This all-in-one approach was detrimental to the country," she quotes a senior analyst as saying.
Shaheen addsd that the key concern in the security establishment was not why he is doing it "but what he is doing". "This wily petty politics is untenable and unacceptable at the level where he has risen. A strong sense of moral uprightness is needed and a man who openly proves that he does not stand by his promises, can hardly make a claim to be the head of the state. Zardari has to quickly correct this image if he is to be taken seriously," writes Shaheen.
Recalling an interaction with Zardari himself, she says that when she told him to drop the idea of running for the presidency, he said: "Why do you say so. I replied -- Because you will not be able to handle it, because it will be too much for everyone to swallow and digest so quickly, because if you fail you will bring the entire political system down." (ANI)
|
|
Read More: Ali
Comments:
