Zardari’s taken his own people by surprise
Bilawal’s claim that Zardari would make a surprise announcement has been vindicated albeit with an element of irony. Zardari’s policy to divert the PPP from populist politics to deal-making has surprised many PPP leaders and activists – particularly those in Punjab who thought it was necessary to confront the PML-N at the masses’ level to keep the PPP together and make political gains. The new policy has several implications. With both Zardari and Bilawal soon to be in the National Assembly their performance would be strictly under watch. Zardari being the first President in Pakistan willing to play the role of an MNA would be treated as an equal by other members of the National Assembly. It is easier to put up with nasty words uttered by uncharitable people in one’s absence but much more difficult when repeated in one’s presence. Neither Bilawal nor Zardari are known as orators and their speeches will be compared with those of Aitzaz Ahsan and Khursheed Shah. If anyone thinks the entry of the two leaders in NA would be a game changer, he is likely to be proven wrong.
Zardari’s entry into active politics at this juncture is likely to lessen the chances of Bilawal gaining political maturity and self-confidence. With Zardari breathing down his neck all the time the party Chairperson would be unable to undertake independent moves – which he tried to do during Zardari’s absence. How long will Bilawal put up with playing a second fiddle is anybody’s guess.
After securing Punjab in LG elections, the PML-N leadership is less likely to give Zardari any major concessions. The government might agree to hold talks with the PPP on the latter’s four demands. It has, however, already rejected the PPP’s key demand to accept the Senate’s Panama-leaks bill. In the case of Karachi, powerful institutions stand in the way of some of the concessions which are likely to be sought. The cases against Dr Asim Hussain or Anwar Majeed were not registered at the behest of the Prime Minister, nor is he able to withdraw them.
