“Let it catch fire first and then we will start discussing the reasons and hands behind the same while sitting atop the adjacent building” seems to be the attitude of the political leadership of the country when it comes to resolving the issues of Karachi.
Every time Karachi burns, the political leadership rushes to extinguish the fire. The leaders issue statements urging the respective political workers to observe calm and patience. Interior Minister Rehman Malik is the one who physically rushes to Karachi in a bid to bring the city life back to normalcy. Let it be the PPP, MQM or ANP, all the political parties preach patience to their workers, like each is the sole saviour of Karachiites. The moment tension in the metropolis city diminishes; the politicians turn indifferent towards the issue – which has so far eaten up thousands of innocent lives – until the next round of massacre kicks off in the financial hub of the country.
No effort is undertaken in between by the political parties, who are in one way or the other responsible for worsening law and order in the city. The seriousness of the rulers and other stakeholders can be gauged from the fact that they never put their heads together in peace time to resolve the issue of Karachi violence once and for all. Either each of the political party and stakeholder fear that they would be exposed as a result of a fair probe into the motives behind the city’s unrest or desire to win the city by use of force and want no moral obligations come in its way as a result of table talk. Needless to say that ethnic, linguistic and political bias stuffed by the political entities in the minds of their respective workers is the main source of hatred amongst the Karachi populace that results in targeted killing and worsening law and order.
Though the issue continues to soar with each passing month and year, the Parliament House remains the favourite forum for parliamentarians to vent their anger against the opponent parties in the garb of Karachi situation. The issue comes to the floor of the House and gives the parliamentarians an opportunity to score points and ultimately the issue is talked out. Each party blames its political rivals for the same, but no one is willing to admit that political parties-driven agenda sets the dawn for Karachiites.
It is an open secret that the real source of tension amongst various segments of the society, particularly in Karachi, is the desire amongst political parties to dominate respective parts of the city, even if it entails using force and resorting to violence. The situation also gives opportunity to criminals to jump into the “game” and play their part. The political parties’ attempt to rule particular pockets of the city with the assistance of gangsters would leave no room for the mediators.
Round tables, judicial commission, statements, visits and manoeuvrings would not help halt the bloodshed until the political parties give up their agenda of ruling the country by use of force instead of power of vote. The political leadership of the country needs to rise to the situation and get the country’s populace out of linguistic, political, regional, ethnic and sectarian tags and identities, set aside political agenda to lay foundation of a concrete Pakistani nation.