Of his own doing
Musharraf is in the news again. The once fearsome SSG general who toppled the takht of Lahore and shooed away the so-called Lion of Punjab into exile is struggling to gain some political traction. Just how low can his fortunes have fallen can be deduced from the fact that he is hiding away like a coward in AIFC, trying to dodge the judicial proceedings against him. If there is anyone responsible for his downfall, it is the man himself.
I always thought that Musharraf had too much arrogance in him. Yes, arrogance and not swagger – these are two different things. Recall his naked threat to Bugti? Or his cruel indifference and barely concealed warning to BB about him holding the reins of her security? Not to forget his strategic fiasco called Kargil, which almost lead to a full blown war between the two nuclear powers. In the end, the country paid the price for his poor judgments. The litany of his blunders makes for a somber reading.
Musharraf’s crimes are many. Top of the list is his sheer incompetence. It makes one shudder that this is the type of generalship that runs the world’s fifth biggest nuclear armed military. From the Kargil disaster to the loss of territory to Taliban and from his double dealings in Afghanistan to his delayed action on Laal Masjid, Musharraf has left an indelible mark of sheer incompetence in his wake. This is the man who was at the top of his game prior to the summer of 2007. He held all the cards, yet barely a year later he was out of office and his chief nemesis were running the country and calling the shots. If there ever is a book titled ‘How Not to Run a Country for Dummies’, then Musharraf would star in it with his many follies.
The problem with Musharraf was exactly what had inflicted his khaki predecessors; they all wanted to feel legitimised. May be Pakistan should have gotten a true dictator or a democrat. Every dictator which comes to rule this country ends up trying to be a democrat. May be it is because we as a diverse nation are too temperamental in nature to bear a fearsome dictator like some other countries.
Musharraf had a chance to make history, especially after the golden opportunity which was served up post 9/11. He could have shelved the jihadi legacy of Zia and sorted his generals out to ditch the bankrupt strategic depth doctrine and solidify a strategic partnership with the Americans for economic development. Instead, he went on to play double games. Running with the hare and hunting with the hounds can get you only so far. As the world watched, Pakistan’s Talibanisation began with a blood fest. The FATA tribal areas fell to the influence of Taliban, followed by the formation of the fearsome TTP that went on to capture and rule Swat – inside Pakistan proper. The mere fact that the cancerous spread of Taliban and the jihadi ideology may blowback never stirred the imagination of our strategic geniuses in Rawalpindi. During all this Musharraf continued to believe his own rhetoric and the ultimate lie which he made into a slogan – Pakistan First. It was anything but Pakistan First. His experiment with sham democracy is another miserable tale.
Musharraf left in his wake a country in a near civil war. The Baloch insurgency, the most potent in years due to his making a martyr out of Bugti and ceding the control of North West Pakistan to Taliban are some of the highlights of his misrule. There are many others such as covering up the whole Abdul Qadir Khan nuclear fiasco. This is his legacy yet he still has the gall to blame the politicians. Today Musharraf is nothing but an old man: still living in the fantasy of his imagined importance. He continues to rely on the army as pressure on him to be tried piles up. At most he is nothing but an embarrassment for the all-powerful army.
Scheherazade Sultan is a freelance writer.
Good analysis. Look forward to reading more from you.
I am amazed at the ignorance of this writer. People celebrated when Musharraf took over. Economically the country did better than it ever has. There were fewer suicide bombings. The country had respect in the world. Steel Mills was making record profits. PIA was profitable. Country did not have to go to IMF and beg for money. Dollar was only worth 60 rupees. What Musharraf won on battlefield in Kargil, Nawaz gave away in negotiations. "Lion of Punjab" cried in his prison cell, asked for forgiveness, made a deal and ran away from the country with his tail tucked between his legs. No one ever heard of his family members being high govt. jobs. No one ever pointed the finger at him for corruption. Compare his rule to any other rule in the country by any other politician and you will see that Pakistan was a much better place to live. The writer seems to attack Musharraf on personal basis instead of focusing on and comparing facts. Pakistan will never have another leader like Musharraf.
NOT………………………………………….!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are you out of your mind. Before Musharraf there were no suicide bombing. They Started under his rule. Steel mill and pia downfall began under Musharraf. They were profitable until 2003 and started losing money after that. Check the records. Country did indeed go to IMF under his rule. Tell me if Musharraf wasn't corrupt where has all this money come from. No regular general is this. Believe me i know a few. Electricity problem was created under Musharraf. All the problems we are facing right now are musharraf's creation. Its people like you who support him who are absolutely 100% to blame as well.
Musharraf is still portaying that he is the Army Chief & the President of Pakistan some people live in fools paradise .
It seems the writer is talking the language of SS. Musharraf has given a lot to this country. It is for him and his NRO, that we now have taste the fruits of democracy. The sharifs are only taking revenge.
NRO was a toatal humbuck,which was not implectaed by Musharraf & his follow elected govt of Zardari, he shiould have implemented it in his tenure,but their were names of his staunch ally MQM.
Not Musharraf nor any one person but Pakistan itself, with its hatreds and religious intolerance, is to blame for its misery and backwardness.
WOW Mr writer you came up with all this by yourself Tsk TSk Tsk
An excellent and a factual article.
Please name ONE Pakistani leader who has shown leadership,honesty,integrity and pro Pakistani leadership since the late 60's
The problem with many people is that the do not recognize when they do have a good leader.They gravitate to to the lowest possible level and kick their good leaders when they are down and float the garbage to the surface-all the way since the Bhutto dynasty to the present.
I personally think that Musharraf had a difficult hand to play and he may have saved Pakistan from foreign aggression at the
At that very sensitive period the world was going through.
I would have him as Pakistan's leader over self serving corrupt leaders over the last 40 odd years.
Unhappy
Right to the point. The man took us down the drain
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