For the rulers of Pakistan, self-preservation is the name of the game. And let me make it clear that my reference here is by no means to the army chief General Raheel Sharif, despite the great initiatives he has taken in various areas this year— including the foreign policy, the war on terrorists, and the ongoing operation in Karachi against the criminals of all varieties.
Mr Asif Ali Zardari and Mian Nawaz Sharif are the ones who regard themselves as the rulers of Pakistan because of their total control on the breed of democracy that they are keen to preserve, for the rich benefits it guarantees them.
The manner in which Sindh Assembly passed a resolution to clip the wings of the Rangers was indicative of the threat that Mr Asif Ali Zardari was and is sensing in the air for himself. It is not just Dr Asim Hussain’s plight that has induced Mr Zardari to wage his own kind of war on the forces threatening the culture of corruption (that has been rampant in Sindh) it is also Zardari Sahib’s own safety that is at stake.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali has acted atlast in the defense of common sense, after considerable apprehensions had surfaced regarding Mian Sahib’s continued silence over the matter.
The extension to the empowered Rangers has been granted for two months only. Will Karachi be a heaven of peace after two months?. Is this the period required to eliminate crime and its patronisers from Karachi?
One wonders how long the rulers of Pakistan can play these games with the destiny of the country—- declaredly for the cause of democracy— and effectually for their own preservation.