GE 2018 may be the least of our worries
Panama Leaks case is practically over. I don’t want to go into the reasons of why we failed, but it is over because we have already declared that we will boycott the Judicial Commission formed by SC although we had made a public pledge that we will abide by any decision made by the court. We can’t rally public protest for it because our legal counsels could not provide credible evidence and, as a result people have lost interest in it because of that. Our lack of leadership during lockdown is another reason no one wants to come on the street. Electronic media will also stop reporting it because rating hungry channels don’t want to pursue something that does not have audience interest in it. We also failed to produce any structural changes in laws that could prevent future corruption.
Panama leaks failure is yet another item in the lost list of failures produced by JKT and his friends. You all may not remember but during 2014 dharna Ishaq Khakwani, a close associate of JKT, filed a disqualification petition against PM. After studying the petition I sent a message to Mr. Khakwani that it will be a failed attempt as current laws does not support his plea. I asked him why he would pursue something that even a non-lawyer like me can see has no legs. He did not have any substantial answer and eventually the petition was rejected by the SC. We must also recall that legal counsel of JC on election rigging was also selected by JKT. In that event also we failed to establish systematic rigging and could only prove constituency level irregularities. When I read the JC report I sent an SMS to IK that he has been sold out. Bottom line is that JKT and his friends have only delivered failures to the party.
The next challenge for us is to prepare for 2018 general elections. Do we want to continue allowing JKT and his friends to control the party through their illegitimate titles? Do we want to rely on a group of people that have consistently failed to deliver to the party? Friends of JKT claim that all decisions are made by IK so they can’t be blamed for these failures. It is a lame excuse and if they have no voice in decision-making then they should leave their unconstitutional titles.
To prepare for 2018 general elections it is important to develop a capable central team based on party constitution and then develop a tanzeem up to the district levels. I have asked some people to meet with IK and request him to initiate dialogue and consensus building. I hope he will welcome the offer and initiate it. This is the only way declining fortunes of the party can be revived although it will be a difficult task as a lot of damage is being done. But it is still worthwhile to give it a try. If IK decides to continue relying on JKT – who is effectively working as chief of staff rather than Sec Gen – then most people told me they will stay home and watch from the sidelines.