Opinion Maker

By Tanvir Ahmed Siddiqui

Freedom of expression is always and exclusively the freedom for the one who thinks that he / she thinks differently. No matter how far and how different one thinks  but I believe the saying that “no author and thinker is a man of genius or divinity neither to his publisher nor to his / her readers” mainly because it is also said that “every intellectual attitude is latently either biased or political one way or the other”. Therefore to my belief there is no such thing for human mind as neutral and unbiased despite all tall claims of any intellectual moderator or orator that he /she is neutral and unbiased. Neutrality by itself is a mechanized technical feature that has been developed exclusively for an engine to keep the wheels stationary. Where as a human mind is there to evolve even when on rest.  Human never stops from ideas though can only entangle or stuck at a point and that too for or against any personal desire and preference.

Political Critiques on our political round about are like Art & Fashion Critiques labeling their own political likes and dislikes and preference in political fashion. Most of our prominent in-media stalwarts and political analysts mainly assert and spell out their personal likes and dislikes to pursue their own desires and preferences. They are doing so exactly the way those  sponsored or independent  Art Gallery or Fashion Ramp critiques sitting beside the catwalk  ramps to pass on   their judgments in order to tell fashion fans about what is current and what is outdated in the market. Wish any intellectual Corner of a cozy and comfortable sitting lounge or a coffee shop of a social club or a studio of tv channel  could decide and give the final verdict to the people at large about Who and what  is outdated and who and what is Current on political stands? As an ordinary reader of their analytical reports  and as a common audience of their talk shows and at the same time as   a  registered voter I find their wishful thoughts and sentiments as reflection of hate and love of some faces over the others.

Well in this age of  freedom of expression everyone has the right to think and decide about a dream hero out of  his /her own  sweet dreams but no one should have the right to adjudge and label  the rest of the stuff as out dated and redundant or as a  rejected piece of  quality control on the line. 

Heading towards next elections the mud slinging brawl as always on our Political Roundabout is gradually picking up the momentum but this time it seem to be more exciting and exuberant mainly because of the commercialization of newstainment. In political arena the PMLn considered an angry King Kong is being taken as the challenging odd at square against all others so calling themselves as evens.   I  agree with all those who every now and than bash upon to share their displeasure, deep regret and concern about democratic failures in totality.  I also quite agree that people of Pakistan on the day of 18^th Feb 2008 gave the mandate basically to PPP and PMLN to clean the “Augean Stables” to which they both have failed more or less.  But within context of that classic story of “Cleansing of the Augean Stables” our critiques do not reveal those details of Greek mythology about how “Augean Stables” were actually cleansed?

For general interest of my readers I would like to mention here a piece of my knowledge about the concept of “ Cleansing of Augean stables”. In Greek mythology Augean was a King and his palace was of course on a hilltop of his kingdom.  King Augean possessed vast herds of horses and cattle which had deposited their manure dung and filth in such huge quantity over the years that a thick aroma hung over the entire kingdom.  Augean Stables were so much filthy, dirty and polluted that no royal army of janitorial servants could ever clean.  Unbearable and extremely polluted environment made the lives and living extremely difficult especially of the commoners and ordinaries of his kingdom down the hill.   Since the King Palace was atop the hill he and his elite were not much bothered because of expanded and unbearable pollution. Therefore in order to get rid of the suffering the commoners and ordinaries of the land had to finally render the services of Hercules.  The task was so huge and mighty that Mr. Hercules had no alternative but to intelligently divert the flow of two rivers through those stables in order to wash and drain out those heaps and mounts of cattle filth, manure and poop out of stables.

If our Govt is like of King Augean on the hill and our national institutions like Pakistan Railways / PIA / Pak Steel and so many others are metaphorically those Augean Stables than I do agree that the stink out of these stables is now making lives and living of us ordinaries absolutely miserable.

The task of cleansing of our stables been always  so huge and  humongous that we ever since   remained on a lookout  for  someone a Hercules.

In our day dreams and high hopes as always we presumed once again that the mandate of people of Pakistan on that Feb.18, 2008 was no less a Herculean catalyst together for PPP & PMLN. That catalyst of public mandate had given both of them enough Herculean power that they could so easily divert the mighty flow of River Indus through those stables to cleans and wash out the heaps of garbage and shit  out of these stinky stables. But again in our innocence we ignored an unfortunate and bitter and a major most factor. But now let us try to recall  that as a precautionary measure much prior to the general elections of Feb. 18, 2008 the Mr. Zardari  was already injected with an antidote shot of generic NRO  in his arms. This all in one kind of precautionary antidote shot was injected actually to encounter dilute and subside that possible Herculean effect of the so called public mandate of the majority voters.

The NRO shot was although injected on the arm of Mr. Zardari  but virally infected the whole political and non-political system and structure of our country to keep us all in a tight straitjacket. What a Unique magical multiplier effective antidote was the NRO under American License that was indigenously developed in labs of the than establishment under  Commando and his working partner Ms. Condi Rice. The than deposed King Augean Mr. Mushurruf who  abandoned his palace  when his king League horses went astray.  Mr. Asif Ali Zardari under black law of immunity was made to  run fast uphill in order to replace the than King.    Thereafter deceptions of Mr. Zardari the King Augean,   Mr. Nuwaz Sharif decided to ride away on his high morality  horse and now striving to retain his legacy within and around Punjab. Punjab as a political war theater is of course under challenge   by the  champ Mr. Khan a  striving  political aspirant who is trying to prove himself a messiah, an angle and a savior.  Despite all analytical reports of industrious analysts only the results on the eve of elections will tell us all whether The Khan of drones  comes out really as an Hercules or  merely a Trojan  horse of PPP + King League + MQM + APML nexus.  

Beside all this vibrancy, excitement and thrill on our political roundabout it is also true that there is no such word and jargon and term like “Ideal Democracy”. Controversy and more controversy therefore is an integral part of Democracy.  As long as we have to abide by the present constitution of Pakistan we need to remember that Democracy and consistent Democracy by itself is the only source and process of minimizing controversies but of course over the period of stipulated time whether we like it or not.  Those who are so glad to hate politicians in and fail to like and accept the whole system in totality must strive hard to abrogate the present constitution.