Imran Khan’s political prospects

All the recent surveys show Imran Khan to be the most popular political leader in Pakistan. Whether this popularity can turn into a victory in the elections is another matter. It mainly depends on two factors: firstly, how Mr Khan handles his advantage to convert it into an election victory; and secondly and more importantly, how the urban and rural voters react to their present misery brought about by corruption and mismanagement of the incumbent government and the opposition politicians.

Talking about Imran Khan’s chances of winning the forthcoming elections, Mr Khan has some qualities which can make him a great leader. He is very patriotic, sincere, honest and above all very persistent and hardworking. The setting up and running of a huge philanthropic setup – Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and collection of donations with sheer will power – is a living proof of his tremendous determination and hard work. This also indicates his immense popularity with Pakistanis at home and abroad. There is no doubt he will put his best efforts to improve the lot of the ordinary people and put a stop to the prevailing corruption and lack of good governance.

However, it takes more than an iron will and a desire to make a difference to win an election in this land of the pure. He has to alter some of his personal traits and habits. I can say this because I had the privilege of knowing Imran Khan when he was the dashing young captain of the cricket team which won Pakistan its sole World Cup in 1992. At that time he forgot to mention the efforts of his teammates and concentrated on his own great achievements in his speech. He cannot afford to make such mistakes in the ruthless game of Pakistani politics now. He has to carry his team and all his admirers with him.

Mr Khan needs to curtail his ego and become more down to earth so that he can carry the people with him. One of our great leaders, Mr Z A Bhutto probably had a bigger ego than Mr Khan but he was able to control his ego to convince the people that he was one of them and that he was burning with compassion for them. He has to develop the same quality.

Secondly, Mr Imran Khan has to b a little flexible in politics. This does not mean that he should become soft against corruption or bad governance. His campaign against this chaos is his great strength. Flexibility means that he should realise that merely anti-American, anti-corruption slogans and Nawaz Sharif bashing will not make him win the elections. He should read the ground realities and change his political strategy accordingly.

In politics, one cannot afford to be rigid. Rigidity is a characteristic of dictators who rule their people through the barrel of a gun. There is no harm in being flexible. The people of Pakistan are sick and tired of the same old political parties who have failed to deliver both in government and in opposition. Mr Khan offers the people of Pakistan a good alternative which they can be persuaded to accept with some serious and concentrated efforts.

Mr Khan is in the process of collecting a good team for his party. He needs to recruit some clean and well reputed politicians in his party and carry them with him. He must develop a strong second and third tier of leadership within his party. His present Dharna Politics can prove to be a good pressure tactics for an early election, provided he can turn his support turn into a mass movement. The hundred-day programme of PTI should be specific. It should spell out how Mr Khan’s party proposes to improve the lot of ordinary people, get rid of inflation, energy crisis and above all terrorism. How to handle the Karachi and Balochistan issues? What is his party’s stand on the creation of new provinces?

He also has to spell out as to how to improve the image of Pakistan and portray it as a peaceful and safe country where foreign investors can invest without any hesitation. In the realm of foreign policy, Mr Khan should be open-minded and without any prejudices against any specific country.

I wish Mr Khan all the best and pray for his success in elections, whenever they take place. Hopefully, the urban and rural voters of Pakistan, who have been completely driven to the wall by the present leadership, will be more sensible this time around and not vote on “bradari system” and for their landlords. They should vote for a party that can deliver results.

The write is a former bureaucrat.