INTERVIEW: Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo
PPP Punjab President
PPP is hard at work in Punjab, planning for something!
These are definitely interesting time for the Peoples Party in Punjab. It’s been some time since the sting of the ’13 defeat. And however much everybody has fought to ‘save democracy’, the ruling party has been defanged, in the centre and in Punjab, so the heavy mandate hangover has fizzled out. The PTI seems tilting the initiative pendulum its way again, springing back from the dharna disappointment to impressive rallies. But politicians not subscribing to naya Pakistan will tell you that retreating from Islamabad will leave them weakened too. And if you talk to Manzoor Wattoo, PPP’s Punjab President, the build-up simply translates into his party cashing in on popular discontent.
It’s difficult to reach the Punjab President these days, with Zardari sb in town, and very visible shuffling and reshuffling, not to mention strategy and tactics meetings, going on. He spares a few minutes late Friday night, after another marathon session with the co-chairman.
So has the visit helped? There was obvious discontent among party workers. The ruling party has not exactly been nice to PPP workers here, something Ch Aitzaz Ahsan pointed out while saving democracy in the House. But this question usually prompts the same answer from PPP leaders.
“PPP jiyalas have always been encouraged to speak freely to the leadership”, he said. “This is a culture we have developed over decades. The leadership has given this liberty. This dialogue does not mean there is discontent in the party. This is, rather, an expression of respect and love”.
After meeting with the former president, and expressing their concerns, there is not one party worker in the province, according to Manzoor Wattoo, who has any reservations anymore.
Asif Zardari actually came to Punjab to chart the party’s future in the province. And PPP has been laying the groundwork for some time now.
The old guard has been made to make way for fresh blood, it seems. Maybe how the youth has responded to PTI has something to do with the new mindset. But “new blood” has replaced veteran leaders across the province, some who have served for more than 20 years
“We have prepared an extensive program”, said Wattoo. “We have restructured the party at district, tehsil and city level”.
The old guard has been made to make way for fresh blood, it seems. Maybe how the youth has responded to PTI has something to do with the new mindset. But “new blood” has replaced veteran leaders across the province, some who have served for more than 20 years.
“We have changed presidents in more than 20 districts”, he added. But, he was quick to point out, “these changes have been made after consensus between key stakeholders, and everybody is happy with the changes”. And it was regarding such party policies that workers and leaders from across the province flocked to the former president.
But why such movement at this point in time? Granted, the party needed to be jolted – which, in politics means thorough reorganisation – after the election cardiac arrest, but is this plan meant to position for the ’18 election, or is the high command foreseeing a poll sometime sooner? Maybe mid-term elections? (Not many politicians outside the PTI are willing to stake their reputation on this call at the moment).
“Even if there is a mid-term election, it cannot be possible before one year”, Wattoo continued. “And I’ve said before, if the government really fails to complete its term, it would be because of its own mistakes”.
The Sharif government has made quite a reputation of shooting itself in the foot. As Wattoo pointed out, incidents like Model Town and Constitution Avenue stand out, and unwise politics like delaying the four constituencies have betrayed a surprising lack of vision time and again.
“But these dharnas are not a threat to the government, nor are they the right way to do things”, he said.
And should push come to shove, and a situation develop where the N league leaves office ahead of time, the PPP will not be unprepared.
“It’s been quite a challenge for me to reorganise the party so quickly”, he added. “But we have done our homework well”.
It wasn’t too difficult to drum up support among party ranks, according to him, because the election loss of last year appeared larger than it really was.
“We were made to lose the election”, he complained.
So, at least there, there is a convergence with the PTI?
“Of course, we have said all along that there was massive rigging in the election. But we do not support the dharna style of politics. It sets a very dangerous precedent. Marching large numbers on the capital to make threats does not help politics or democracy in Pakistan”.
The Sharif government has made quite a reputation of shooting itself in the foot. As Wattoo pointed out, incidents like Model Town and Constitution Avenue stand out, and unwise politics like delaying the four constituencies have betrayed a surprising lack of vision time and again
But there were other reasons too, he admitted. Some people did not vote for the party because of dissatisfaction over issues like load shedding. Then there were unending suo motus from the SC. And then there was interference like Memogate, etc, which put the party in awkward situations.
But now their preferred method, he said, was developing consensus among like-minded forces and forging alliances to prepare for the next vote.
“Mr Zardari is a master of taking people along, even those with differing political mindsets. He displayed this tendency repeatedly during his tenure as president. And we took major decisions despite difficulties”.
Interestingly, the party’s reorganisation is not restricted to structural and managerial novelties. Another gambit has been introduced in the equation – the official launch of Bilawal Bhutto as the chief on the ground.
So, about the launch? PPP leaders’ answer to this is also pretty typical.
“This is definitely the right time for Bilawal to come to the fore”, he said confidently. “Politics is a difficult field and he knows it, he has seen his father in jail for 11 years. He has seen his mother martyred. And, of course, he is aware of the sacrifices of his grandfather. Therefore, it is definitely a well thought out and calculated decision”.
Therefore the impression that he has been scripted into politics is, of course, wrong. That is the official party line. It is in keeping with the fresh blood initiative, at least in Punjab. And with PML-N and PTI fighting it out, it is logical for the PPP to have its footprint registered. The coming weeks will tell a lot. Political fault-lines are likely to be revised in Punjab, and everybody is wriggling as hard as possible to increase their share. And whether it is Zardari sb’s political guile, or Bilawal’s fresh blood that is at play, Wattoo’s working in Punjab over the last couple of quarters will come under test.
