In Comes Imran...

By Amir Zia

Monthly Narratives'

November 2016

Challenging the status quo

Khan continues to breathe down the prime minister’s neck with vengeance as the most formidable opponent of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government.

Critics call him hungry for power, others criticize him for harbouring a soft spot for the local Taliban and fascination for an archaic tribal system. But even his bitterest rivals cannot accuse him of stealing public money or of corruption – charges that haunt many top leaders of other mainstream political parties.
After spending over two decades in politics, Imran Khan, Chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI), feels that he finally stands close to getting the most prized wicket of his political career – the scalp of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Khan may have lost the grand push to oust Sharif from power in 2014, after a prolonged sit-in in front the Parliament, but he continues to breathe down the prime minister’s neck with vengeance as the most formidable opponent of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government.

If two years ago, the PTI chairman was targeting Sharif with allegations of stealing the 2013 general election, today he is also armed with the revelations made in the Panama Papers, which charge the prime minister’s family of operating and owning undeclared off-shore companies and properties worth billions of rupees amassed through shadowy means.

nd the tenacious Khan is back on the streets, saying that this remains the only way to force national institutions – such as the judiciary, the National Accountability Bureau and the Federal Board of Revenue — to act against the Sharifs, whom he accuses of mega-corruption and monopolizing power.

However, Sharif family loyalists and some liberals see Khan as a destabilizing force for democracy. They maintain that the PTI leader should wait for the next elections — due in 2018 — to hold Sharif accountable through the peoples’ verdict. They also accuse him of trying to pave the way for a military intervention in an attempt to wrap up the system.

But Khan and his aides deny these allegations. Khan believes Pakistan doesn’t have the luxury of time given the grave challenges it faces on both the internal and external fronts. He asserts that institutions are being destroyed by Sharif, who appears possessed by the desire to control them. He sees the ‘undemocratic and dictatorial’ behavior of Sharif and his family as the biggest threat to democracy and the country.

One can argue and differ on many points with Khan, but he makes sense when he objects to dynastic politics and calls for greater accountability of the rulers, demands reforms and granting independence and autonomy to institutions by freeing them from political interference.

To many political analysts and commentators, Khan may sound immature and simplistic, but these apparent flaws hold the PTI leader apart from conventional politicians. The PTI chairman comes across as a leader who seems serious and sincere in shaking up and overhauling the system.

Will he be able to walk the talk, if and when his moment of glory comes? It remains a question which only time will tell. But indeed, Pakistan’s political scene would be grimmer and sadder if we visualise it without Imran Khan and his constant war cries, challenging and baffling the Sharifs and other conventional politicians and their ruling families.

Imran Khan talks to the monthly ‘Narratives’ at his Banigala residence, Islamabad, explaining and justifying the need to shake the system through street power.

Narratives: You frequently say that Nawaz Sharif’s government is worse than the previous PPP government. What are your key objections?
Imran Khan: Number one remains the mismanagement of the energy sector. The price of oil came down from almost 120 dollars a barrel to between 40 and 50. That’s one of the biggest bonanzas a government could have had. Almost 40 percent of electricity is produced from oil. The price of oil has been almost halved, but they have doubled the price of electricity.

The circular debt has again gone upto Rs. 350 billion, after paying Rs. 480 billion (when Nawaz Sharif came to power). Load shedding has increased…That’s one factor.

Investment is below the levels that prevailed during Zardari’s tenure. Exports have fallen. Cotton production has fallen and the textile industry is in crisis. Agriculture is worse off than before. And there are mega-corruption cases, for example Nandipur, and this metro, which is double the price than anywhere else. The Orange Train is being bulldozed through, not protecting our heritage sites or caring about people being displaced. The focus is to show a big ticket programme for the 2018 election. And there are big commissions on all these projects. There are mega-corruption cases, including the new airport scam. The LNG deal is completely shrouded in mystery and almost all their big projects have overshot the allocated budgets. Not in one field, have they been better than Zardari.
I think this is the worst ever government. Never before have I seen Pakistan hit rock bottom. The only business which is flourishing is that of the Sharif Empire. Each time Nawaz Sharif comes to power, the Sharif Empire flourishes and the rest of the country goes down.

Narratives: Is the Panama scandal a bigger challenge for Nawaz Sharif as compared to the allegations of electoral rigging? Why haven’t there been spontaneous protests in Pakistan, like in other countries where leaders had to resign because of public pressure?

Imran Khan: I think people would have come out on the streets, but our civil society is not that well organized. It’s still developing. The size of civil society — which is politicized — is very small. Basically people are used to accepting injustice, corruption and things like rigging. That’s one of the reasons why people have not come out. But the magnitude of the rigging scandal is as huge as Panama. Twenty-two political parties in Pakistan claimed that the elections were rigged. Twenty-five million ballots were missing. In no civilized country would such elections be considered legitimate. But they survived it because the whole opposition in the Parliament was with Nawaz Sharif. The majority of the media was supporting Nawaz Sharif. The difference now is that the entire opposition in the Parliament wants Nawaz Sharif to be tried according to the TORs. The majority of the media, especially the credible journalists, are all convinced that Nawaz Sharif should have to answer for his children owning billions of rupees worth of property and businesses abroad with no source of income. And most of all, the contradictory statements of the children on the issue of the Mayfair flats. So the difference now is that the entire opposition, majority of the media and most of the intelligentsia in Pakistan, are all convinced that Nawaz Sharif is guilty in this situation.

Narratives: Do you think all the opposition parties are serious in holding Nawaz Sharif and his family accountable in the Panama scandal?

Imran Khan: It is the defining moment in Pakistan. If, for the first time, the prime minister of a country is tried by an institution, which applies the rule of law equally — I mean like the FBR, the Election Commission and the Supreme Court… if the laws that are applied to a common citizen or a weaker person, are also applied to the strongest, which in this case is the prime minister, (it will be a defining moment). The prime minister is extremely strong because he has captured all the national institutions except the army which he is scared of. That’s the reason he is offering the Army Chief (the option) to become Field Marshal and get an extension. The prime minister basically controls all institutions. Now, we can force the institutions to act and bring him under the rule of law. This will be a huge change in Pakistan’s political history. That’s why it is the defining moment. Whether other political parties are serious or not, the fact is that anyone who moves towards Nawaz Sharif is politically doomed.

The magnitude of the rigging scandal is as huge as Panama. Twenty-two political parties in Pakistan claimed that the elections were rigged. Twenty-five million ballots were missing. In no civilized country would such elections be considered legitimate.

Narratives: Do you think the political system has the capacity and ability to hold the top people accountable? Do we need new legislation?

Imran Khan: You don’t need to bring in any new laws. If the existing laws are applied properly as they are applied to the weak, then for the prime minister it’s an open and shut case. This is the case in which all the probe has been done. There is nothing left (to investigate further) now. The prime minister’s children own Panama companies, which have assets worth billions of rupees. And the prime minister has lied on the floor of the Parliament that these were bought in 2005 whereas we have all the proof that they were bought 10 years earlier. It was money gained from corruption, which was laundered. That is why he is stuck. I don’t think that he will be able to get out of this.

Narratives: Despite strong perception about poor governance and allegations of massive corruption, how have traditional political forces such as the PML N and the PPP managed to hold on to their vote bank? What magic wand do they have?

Imran Khan: Actually their vote-bank is falling. The problem is that the elections are massively rigged. Recently, we had the Azad Kashmir elections, which were literally bought. They have multiple ways to rig elections. Had the judicial commission gone all the way and not worried about the consequences of its decision… they should have gone all the way and proved that the elections were not just rigged massively but rigged in different ways. If those ways were exposed, at least the next elections would have been free and fair.

Narratives: The traditional political parties are entrenched. The system favours them. Why would this ruling elite want any reforms which would erode their power?

Imran Khan: There is only one way; street power. You have to come out on the streets and protest. There is no other way. In Pakistan, eventually it has to be peoples’ power. What we aim to do is show that people are going to stand up to this and force the institutions to act.

Narratives: If elections are held tomorrow, without electoral and political reforms, do you think there is a chance for the PTI? Are you demanding any electoral reforms?

Since the 2013 elections, we have done a lot of introspection. We have analyzed the different ways the elections were rigged. This time we will be much better prepared. We were not prepared in 2013. At least 80 percent of our candidates had never contested elections before. This time we will be going in prepared.
If there are EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines), biometric system, it would help. But until people who rig elections are punished, it is not going to make any difference. Laws are only important if they are implemented. But if laws are openly flouted, like they were in 2013, then what’s their use. The Judicial Commission made 40 observations the way elections were stolen. Yet not one person was taken to task which shows that the Election Commission was complicit in the rigging of the 2013 elections.

Narratives: Do you feel the need for a constitutional amendment to establish checks and balances on the prime minister, who has emerged as a mini-dictator and cannot be held accountable by his party, the ceremonial president or even the system?

Imran Khan: Actually, all we need is for a democracy to function. Political parties need to hold intra-party elections. The PML-N is basically a form of kingship. The children are taking over. Hamza Sharif is ruling the roost in Punjab and Maryam Nawaz held the fort when Nawaz was away. These parties are decaying and degenerating. The cabinets of 1988 and 1990 were better than the cabinets of today because now they have become family limited companies. They behave like kings. Nawaz Sharif hardly held any cabinet meetings. He is one man who takes decisions or his relatives do. Like Ishaq Dar and his daughter.

The prime minister is extremely strong because he has captured all the national institutions except the army which he is scared of. 

 Narratives: There are some forces which advocate the presidential form of government. What are your views?

Imran Khan: In a way, the presidential form is much better for one main reason that the leader is directly elected and then he finds the best people who understand the art of governance. The problem with our system right now is that those who understand governance do not know the science of contesting elections. Those who can contest the elections, don’t know governance. That’s the big problem. If you look at the quality of ministers, they are of very low standard. But the problem we face is that Punjab is 60 percent of Pakistan and there is no way that the smaller provinces will accept the presidential form of government because they would have no chance of getting (someone) elected. For the presidential system, you have to have more provinces.

Narratives: Do you think the creation of new provinces will help erase provincialism and regionalism?

Imran Khan: It is complex because there are problem in Balochistan. There are certainly problems in Sindh. If Karachi is separated from Sindh there will be a complete revolt. What needs to be divided is Punjab. It is too huge. You can’t have almost 110 or 120 million people in one province. And then the way Punjab is being ruled… around 56 percent funds of Punjab are being spent in Lahore.

You have to come out on the streets and protest. There is no other way. In Pakistan, eventually it has to be peoples’ power. What we aim to do is show that people are going to stand up to this and force the institutions to act.

Narratives: Why do major parties — the PML-N and the PPP — bitterly oppose local government? They made it toothless through controversial reforms. What’s your take on it?

Imran Khan: It is simply because they have access to all the funds. The chief minister uses these funds — which should be spent by the local governments — to buy members of the parliament. Those funds are given to the members of the parliament basically to bribe them. KP is the only province, where 30 percent of the funds go directly to the local governments.

Narratives: What two steps would you like to take to fix Pakistan?

Imran Khan: The first most important step is to strengthen the institutions. For instance in the KP, we have made the biggest impact on the lives of the people by strengthening the police system. We have depoliticized it by law. Politicians cannot control transfers and posting of police officers anymore. Only the IG Police can do it. Then, public safety commissions have been set up at district and provincial level where the people hold the police accountable. So there can no longer be any political victimization by the police. Similar steps have been taken for the bureaucracy. Countries prosper, when you institutionalize them and fix the governance system.
The second step is human resource development. There are only two ways that countries have moved forward; by developing their human resource and building institutions.

Narratives: Why do you think the government wasted time in the implementation of the National Action Plan?

Imran Khan: I don’t think Nawaz Sharif has time for all this. He has conducted so many foreign tours. Almost Rs. 70 crore has been spent on these tours. What investment has he brought into Pakistan? When the country is ablaze, when there are so many crises, when the Bacha Khan University terrorist attack took place, Nawaz Sharif was shopping at Harrods. And he didn’t come back. I don’t think he is particularly pushed about what’s happening in Pakistan. That’s why you should never have a head of state whose interests are not in Pakistan. His business interest, properties, all the billions are outside the country.

Narratives: Can Nawaz Sharif be given credit for operation Zarb-e-Azb?

Imran Khan: Just look at what has been the response from the people of Pakistan. The people of Pakistan give credit to General Raheel Sharif for the operation. If you ask the Army, they will say that there is no political side. The Army is doing its side (of the work), but where is the political settlement? In the tribal areas, the Army completed the operation, but where are the FATA reforms? What will happen to these 3.5 million refugees? Look at the state of FATA right now. They have nothing to come back to. We are looking at a huge potential crisis. The moment the Army leaves, you can have the same explosive situation again.

The government has not done anything about FATA. And that is where Nawaz Sharif has failed as a leader. He should have taken the lead and gone side by side with the military solution.

I don’t think he has either the vision or the interest. I think someone who could go to India and take his son to the inauguration of Modi as prime minister and then go and visit the business partner of his son… that sums up his leadership.

Narratives: Nawaz Sharif drew a lot of criticism about the way he tried to reach out to Indian PM Narender Modi. How will you describe this policy?

Imran Khan: As far as reaching out to the Indians — the dialogue and the peace talks — that’s a positive thing. There is no harm in having a good personal relationship with the head of another country, but that has to be institutionalized. It has to be done through the Foreign Office which has an institutional history behind it. This Nawaz Sharif-type of foreign policy has failed everywhere because whatever his personal relationships are, look at Pakistan which stands isolated. The Foreign Office has again been degraded because Nawaz Sharif has no foreign minister.

If he was Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was a foreign minister initially and had an exceptional mind, one could understand Nawaz Sharif running the show without a minister. But Nawaz Sharif is clueless about foreign policy. His idea of foreign relations is having personal relations with someone. Therefore, when the crunch came, Modi turned around and managed to isolate Pakistan internationally. When the Indian oppression took place in Indian occupied Kashmir, look at the way Modi lashed out at Pakistan and Nawaz Sharif has not even uttered a word against him.

Remember he wanted to be Ameer-ul Momineen through the 15th amendment in 1997-98. Basically Nawaz Sharif wants to be a king. And anyone who is in the way, he either tries to buy them or remove them from the way.

Narratives: And perhaps the most important of all questions pertains to his relations with the army. Why is there so much tension in civil-military relations under Nawaz Sharif?

Imran Khan: The issue between Nawaz Sharif and the Army is simple. Nawaz Sharif has a desire to control every institution. He does not begin a press conference until a lifafa (envelope with money) is given to all journalists so that they don’t ask awkward questions. He bribed judges, stormed the Supreme Court… he bought politicians – the famous Changa Manga Case — and then the famous episode when he tried to gift a BMW to General Asif Nawaz in the Governor House Murree, which the general refused. He wants to control every institution. He has a history behind him. He wants every institution to be controlled. Remember he wanted to be Ameer-ul Momineen through the 15th amendment in 1997-98. Basically Nawaz Sharif wants to be a king. And anyone who is in the way, he either tries to buy them or remove them from the way. 

Narratives: Do you think Nawaz Sharif and his family have a future in Pakistani politics?

Imran Khan: I think it is over for them. I don’t think they will be able to recover from this. If they want to recover from it, it means they have to succeed in destroying every state institution including the judiciary and the Supreme Court. Unless they destroy all of them to get a reprieve, they are finished. Pakistan is already suffering because he has destroyed every state institution through cronyism and corruption. I remember Mahathir Mohamad telling me that if a prime minister is corrupt, he can only make money by destroying institutions below him. If the NAB is functioning properly, he will be caught, so he has to destroy NAB. If the FBR is functioning properly, he will be caught, so he has to destroy and control the FBR. If the judiciary gets in the way, he will literally have to attack the Supreme Court physically. This never happens in any democratic country. Nawaz Sharif will not allow any institution to work. If he has to make big bucks, which he has already made, he and his family all are billionaires, they have to destroy institutions. All the state institutions have been subdued and destroyed.

Narratives: You staged the longest sit-in in 2014? What has been its gain?

Imran Khan: The gain was the judicial commission. The demand was first to open four constituencies; subsequently it was found that massive fraud was done in all the four. That was just a sample. But sadly, the verdict was totally different to the findings. The 40 findings should have made the election completely unlawful. But they came up with the most bizarre verdict of largely lawful.

Narratives: Do you feel tired? Do you sometimes lose hope given the state of politics and corruption in Pakistan?

Imran Khan: It is true that it has been 20 years. But the point is that I am not doing it for myself. If I was doing it like most politicians, to come to power for personal benefits, then maybe I would have been tired. But the whole idea is that if you want to live in a decent society, in a Pakistan that has respect in the international comity of nations, where your green passport is respected, where there is rule of law and where there is compassion… If you want this, then the only way is to struggle for it. The answer to this is no, I am not tired. I feel closest to my goal now after 20 years of struggle.

Narratives: Your prediction for the coming months?

Imran Khan: Fasten your seat belts… it is going to be an interesting time. I think it will be very difficult for Nawaz Sharif and his mafia to wriggle out of it.

Narratives: Where do you see Pakistan over the next two to three years?

Imran Khan: I am quite optimistic about Pakistan because we have a massive youth population. Nearly 60 percent of our population is under the age of 25 years. This is a politically and socially aware population. The social media has created tremendous awareness. I don’t see this young population accepting injustice and these political mafias. In the coming months, you will see the momentum for change growing. I don’t see how anybody can stop this process of change.