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The lies and triangulations of Imran Khan
Imran Khan knows what he promises is not only undoable, but impossible even under the best of circumstances.
The writer is a lawyer and partner at Ijaz and Ijaz Co in Lahore [email protected]
When the educated, prudent Imran Khan supporter is asked for her views on the unbelievably grand proclamation of the ‘dear leader’ stating that he will uproot corruption in 19 days and eradicate terrorism in 90 days, there are always two slants, often one after the other. The devotee will inevitably begin by arguing how Imran Khan will unquestionably and quite breezily achieve the said objectives in the self-stipulated time period. If the line of reasoning is further pursued (or reasoning used at all), they will gingerly and sheepishly concede that statements might not be susceptible to literal implementation, but making an invigorated comeback, state that he is better than everyone else and has built a cancer hospital and who else could they vote for etc? At this point a smirk breaks out on the face of the PTI foot-soldier; to them it is the clincher. The best argument for Imran Khan is something which can be vaguely phrased as some notion of the ‘lesser evil’. There is some difficulty in grasping the concept of how the subsequent quantitative judgment about less or more is precisely made, once the qualitative determination of ‘evilness’ has been reached.
Let me be plain on the matter, the proclamations of Imran Khan on corruption and terrorism and the arbitrary, flashy deadlines are untrue on their face. They require no elaborate refutation, and a child of 10 having average intelligence should see through them, unless of course they have uncritical love blinding them. This brings us to the question of motive, here again an unflattering binary is unavoidable; either he is lying by design or he does not possess the fortitude to understand and realize what he says. At a core level, it is a choice between deceit and self-deceit. I do not think Imran Khan is fantastically intelligent, but he is decent by cricketer/politician standard. Hence, because he is not severely mentally handicapped, it is safe to say that he does know what he promises is not only undoable, it is impossible that he will get anywhere close to these deadlines in the best of circumstances. The blatant misrepresentations cannot be attributed to Spartan simple-mindedness or childlike innocence; it is done with complete knowledge. Therefore, even to put it at its mildest, Imran Khan is deliberately and consciously lying.
The spirited defence of this lie telling would be, even if he is, so what, all politicians lie, at least he is not corrupt etc. That maybe so, but the mediocrity of his lies is really the crowning insult. It is either sheer laziness or he takes all of us for mere peasants (used metaphorically, as he has little to do with the real peasants). All politicians lie in Pakistan, but Imran Khan does it with a self-righteous impunity and feels he can go completely over the top. All of us, even his supporters, perhaps especially his supporters, should take some offence. George Bush, once reportedly mutilated and modified the famous words of Lincoln by saying, “you can fool some people all of the time, and those are the ones you would want to concentrate on”. To not acknowledge or confront all of this will make the PTI more ‘cultish’ than any other party on which the same charge is levelled by them. It has one slightly deep implication as well, it reduces all politics to apology and trickery, turns it into a circus. Maybe it was true for our politics before the Kaptaan came along, but he is certainly raising the intensity and lowering the bar for hypocrisy. The leaden irony here is that he does all of this, while continuing with his anti-politician and even anti-politics, GHQ-favouring rhetoric.
Imran Khan further believes that the Taliban are not a threat to Pakistan, and reciprocally the Taliban now believe Khan to be a good chap; it is really getting quite mushy. Before one gets all moist and husky at this love affair, also bear in mind that Khan believes that liberals are the “scum” of Pakistan and are the most despicable and dangerous group. Never mind the minorities; they are not a sufficient percentage of the electorate for even superficial consolations to be advanced to them. If it is possible to ‘out-Taliban’ the Taliban themselves, this is it. Sympathiser or apologist might be ineffective for the purpose of conveying real meaning. Not those “brothers” of ours blowing mosques, hospitals and schools up, the real threat is from the uncovered ladies, the Marxists and the whisky drinkers etc who are really to be taken to task. The logic of this should be obvious. And this is the party dominated by the urban elite and with a large proportionate representation of smart, educated women. An amusing denial of this is, that he is really faking it only to get power, once he does, he will go all Mustafa Kamal Ataturk on us. Hold your laughter though; the joke might be on us.
Imran Khan speaks of his fondness for the Taliban, Islamic welfare state (what that exactly is remains a historical mystery), liberal scum and female emancipation, progressive thought etc in the same breath, with complete absence of any embarrassment. Triangulation, a term perhaps most popularly used by Christopher Hitchens in regards to the politics of Bill Clinton is the concept of taking a few, best and most populist notion from both ends of the ideological spectrum and create a non-ideological, non-principled middle ground. In Imran Khan’s case it is certainly triangulation, however, it seems that he is drawing disproportionately heavily from the ultra-religious right rhetoric.
The relative rise of Imran Khan has brought another disturbing and anti-democratic tendency to our already sordid political culture. Any argument against Imran Khan is addressed by attacking the credibility of the accuser or the questioner, often in disobliging terms. This leaning towards the ad hominem is unmistakably indicative of a fascist tendency. Imran Khan cannot and should not be given a free pass to get away with the crudest of lies and terrorist apology.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 11th, 2012.
Reader Comments (238)
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Imran khan displays the smug self righteousness that is the hallmark of religious fanatics;that they are the only ones on the right path,that they know better because they are religious.
All others,liberals and secular people must therefore be called ”scum” because only he himself is on the right path.
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We’ll still vote for Imran. Your analysis will have no bearing. If you can convince me that current lot are better than him, I’ll be the first one to vote.
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HATERS GOING TO HATE NO MATTER WHAT. SAME OLD RHETORIC USED TO ASSASSINATE HIS CHARACTER AS ALWAYS. Get over it IK is here to stay.
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@author – dude you got some personal grudge against Imran Khan ?
answer 1 simple question:
I didn’t even read your article because you first answer my question below
How can you be so sure that Imran Khan is lying ? when he hasn’t been tested even once ?
On the positive side, there’s also a possibility that he fulfills all his promises, isn’t it ?
its my only request to you @ author – DONT ACCUSE HIM BASED OF YOUR MERE BIASED SPECULATIONS
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its funny….author does not believe that problems can be solved in a planned way. obviously he has become so entrenched with the prevailing system that he does not wish to have it changed….after all what would be left for him to criticize for thru his articles and his bread.
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Well you are right about his poor understanding of terrorism, but it doesn’t worry me because military entirely handles the foreign and defense policy. Liberal PPP in the 90s was happy to peruse the army’s policy of strategic depth, but after 911 it started supporting military operations. Now if decides to hold negotiations with Taliban, PPP would happily oblige. Same goes for PMLN, PML-Q. Political parties have no role in anti-terrorism policy. And what concern the common man is the basic issue of governance, and that’s where Imran attracts voters as he has never been tested. He will definitely learn that corruption can’t be ended in 90 days and his oversimplifications were naive, but his heart is in the right place. I am sure Imran can’t be more clueless than other parties.
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I congrat the writer, you are 100% right everything Kaptaan says and has done for the previous 60 years of his life are lies…..examples like SKHospital, Namal University, WC 92.
And ofcourse Kaptaan and his devotees are responsible for all terrorism and corruption in Pakistan….. never mind that this is the only party that has never been in government.
Well done ET, you have really outdone yourself this time…..still waiting for apology on the previous lies published in your paper
http://tribune.com.pk/story/346101/cracks-in-pti-qureshi-vexed-at-imran-over-by-poll-boycott/
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god, you are really ruthless, really really ruthless.
but you have raised very good points, which many of the tribune readers(might i say not the blind ones ) have been raising since long.
i sincerely feel that imran khan should not get away so easily.
he must explain how he will achieve the things he is promising,
otherwise he will really break heart of his young suporters
who are placing the hope of entire pakistan entirely on kaptan sahab
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What I look for, in each reading is “objectivity” and unfortunately I could not find any in this one. An article for the sake of an article on Imran Khan.
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Great article ET and Saroop.
We, Pakistanis, need (and deserve) Truthful leaders like Zardari / Nawaz / Asfandyar / Fazl only.
Khan Saheb! You shouldn’t have been born amongst us, nation of dwarfs, bent upon pulling the legs of any Gulliver who ventures into the arena of our country’s Politics. We did it to Asghar Khan in 70s and are planning to do it to you now. All our intellect & wisdom will not go into suggesting something positive for reforming any shortcomings that your policies may have. We will simply crucify you, with our wisdom and intellect and opinion making skills, for the 65 years of misdeeds done to us by all leaders; except that after that we will vote again for the 65 years legacy.
And when we get another 65 years bashing at their hands, we will start crying “Koi Leader hi nahi milta, sab Choor hein”. Alas.
Over and Out.
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Great article. You have exposed PTI and PTI Trolls to the core.
Bravo!
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This is first–class as usual.
On the economic front he does have GOOD people advising him. BUT, a little birdie tells me he is not listening to the GOOD people but some young bucks who are telling him it is all a piece of cake and WE CAN SPEND OUR WAY OUT OF STAGFLATION.
May the Lord help us.
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Excellent writeup from Saroop as always. Logical and incisive.
Now let the PTI abuse flow.
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Imran khan is to good to be true for people like you..We dont deserve him…he played international sport for 21 years and then married the wealthiest women in London..could have enjoyed his life any where in the world..but he is a idiot and a stupid person..he though he will come into politics with hi noble ideas and we will appreciate him..he forget that the mafia controlling this system is too strong for his patriotism..I dont know why people like you have so much pain when some one says that he will get rid of corruption and terrorism in 90 days…Is this some thing very danger crime IK is committing..who are you to judge him before he delivers….there were 19 top doctors of this country out of 20 who said that a cancer hospital where 70 percent free treatment given to poor is impossible…and what happened after that…every one was saying that dont build a private university in a backward village area..no teacher will go there a lot of issues…what happened after that……The university is giving Bradford university degrees for 90 percent students free…so if some one is saying good for our country even then you have pain…I think you are angry because he said Liberals are scum…and that also he said in another context that how can a liberal agree on a idea of bombing villages where women and children live..how far can we drag this Americas war…there was not a single suicide attack before 9/11 in pakistan..He never said that Taliban are not thread to pakistan but if you just get out from this America war and dont portray your self that you are fighting Americas war..we can start negotiating with them…do we have to stop some where or not…we will kill them..they will do suicide bombing in our cities..for what..why to give them breeding ground…what not stop this war on terror..cut the NATO supplies…dont become slave of America…why allow all these things like Raymond Davis and allowing CIA agents in pakistan….
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First of, it’s amazing how people i generally respect tend to get really petty in their critique of Imran Khan.
This piece certainly didn’t need 10 paragraphs, going point by point: 1) 90/19 days is campaign rhetoric – its an indication of his priorities more than an indication of any timeline 2) he has said he’ll get to work to rid the highest institutions of the country from corruption (some would argue just de-throning Zardari should get the ball rolling in that direction) 3) he called liberals who support drone attacks scum (although i partly agree there with the writer on that point; no Pakistani is scum) 4) he is not a Taliban sympathizer; he is anti-war and believes all attempts at peace were made through inept politicians/generals or were jeapordized by the US 5) he believes he can have a crack at diplomacy to limit the threat of terrorism from certain groups (endless mili ops not the answer) 6) no abuse is warranted; however, his supporters are younger, therefore emotion runs high – it should be easy(ier) for intellectuals to rationalize this – rather than stoop to their level and abel them as “fascist” 7) your theory of triangulation is pretty poor as applied to IK because it is obvious he inspires the ire of every left leaning intellectual on ET and therefore cannot be non-ideological.
Thank you for writing this piece. However, when the basis of your critique has half of his positions just wrong – you should “not get a free pass” to mislead.
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The 545th edition of “Express Tribune vs PTI” Don’t even bother reading anymore!
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It is just a rhetoric, where no fact is provided against IK and writer waisted my 5 minutes.Recommend
Here come the abusive and aggressive PTI trolls.
Brace yourself Saroop.
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I couldn’t agree more. Thanks Ijaz.
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Great article. Only people blinded by his distortion of change won’t see the lies of IK and his feudal landlord goons. The author rightly said IK goes with the flow to fool everyone or anyone he would say something to the Indians over Kashmir another to Pakistanis. If he had the guts he would have told people the truth and accept fixing Pakistan would require some time rather than usual BS of 19 days and 30 days. It is a daunting task. Not to mention his covert alliance with fanatic nut jobs.
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Contradiction Mr.Saroop, at one instance you’ve agreed upon Imran’s rhetoric of eliminating terrorism in 90 days, may it be in satirical nature, as to this may sound absurd and impossible but on theother hand you are simultaneously arguing that Imran khan’s a taliban apologist? Why would a taliban apologist, if for the sake of argument, believed, he is, would repeatedly say on all media channels that he would eliminate terrorism in 90 days? Isn’t he gambling his life by these words? as talibans back in their dens might take that as an intimidation & fear unemployment post KAPTAAN’s govt, so let’s eliminate him to retain our jobs
secondly, perhaps it’s USA the biggest so called ANTI TERRORISM clan, who allowed an OFFICIAL AL-QAEDA OFFICE to be set up in Qatar? So does that mean US is endorsing or surrendering before the talibans?
GHQ’s favorite rhetoric? LOL, Perhaps the Mehran gate has not just tarnished PML-N but also ISI, and it was IMRAN KHAN or PTI who lodged the petition, so here you have your answer GHQ’s favorite petition, as GHQ won’t ever like their meddling into politics be vehemently exposed as it has now, post mehran gate, so kindly have your facts corrected before you write against PTI, Home work is a MUST every time you Bash
List item1.
1.
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Welfare in an economically bankrupt country? That itself is the greatest indication of liberal ‘scum’. Imran Khan saab ought to pick up a textbook before insulting himself again.
Regards,
Rehan
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Boring old stuff there. Haters gonna hate.
Since the government itself makes up majority of the corruption, then a system that is in itself corruption free will automatically eliminate not just corruption but also all avenues for it. As for the 19 days remark, it could very well be an honest slip-of-tongue, which all you Imran Khan haters are latching on. However given the policies and the character of Imran Khan, the leader, I will not be surprised if he manages to reduce large scale corruption in even less than 19 days!
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Hi,
By doing these tasks in 90 days, IK means that he will take the steps and implement his policies within 90 days and that is most important step. All politicians and dictators failed to give any policies and implement any steps that is the reason Pakistan is still not able to be a developed country. Now we have a leader who understands the importance of first 90 days. But unfortunately there are some self oriented journalists who are out there to defend these status quo parties and their wrong doings. When they can’t come up with any proper allegations against the great Khan, hey come up with such articles like this one you have written with ambigous criticism on what IK has said in Jalsas etc.
Can I ask the writer to comment on Mr NAwaz Shareef’s claim that he has already brought the change which IK wants to bring? Has he finished corruption in 90 days? Ofcourse no he couldn’t even announce a policy in 25 years of his rule. But hey who cares. There is not even a single writer who can criticise him on such false claims.
Imran Khan have weaknesses but corruption and false claims is not one of them.
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If someone attacks your house with drones and people appreciate it i wonder what will you say to those people.Hundreds may be thousands of innocents have died because of the drones but when someone protests against this you people start calling him pro taliban no wonder Imran called people like you liberal scum
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Saroop, I think what you have missed here is the element of ‘hope’ … Pakistani youth and ‘forward’ thinking niche have so far had little to cheer for when it comes to politics. Imran Khan has successfully given hope to this particular demographic of our society.
I agree with you on most points. The laughable timelines that Imran has set for his government, his ever changing stance on giving party tickets to corrupt and ‘tried and tested’ politicians of the past, his novice approach towards foreign policy and ties with America, his dubious inclination towards Taliban and somewhat amateur understanding of the establishment all point to a political failure .. yet he has managed to give hope to these people .. and I think with this powerful force behind him, he can afford to be so reckless.
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Bravo!
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Very well written … Imran lies, has no vision, only knows how to attack someone personally and oppose and has nothing to propose. Confused soul I must say.
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“Islamic welfare state (what that exactly is remains a historical mystery)”…
so u don’t know what is a islamic welfare state??…… A true Islamic welfare state is a state where all human beings, regardless of race, religion and gender, are equal in front of the law and the foundation of such state was firstly laid by non other than one of the companions of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and the second caliphate of islam, Umar, and this what Imran khan stands for when he talks about a ‘Islamic welfare state”…. isn’t that difficult thing to understand…is it??
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For the last time, the ending corruption in 19 days was a SLIP OF THE TONGUE by IK. It is funny how only ET highlights such slips as it was nowhere in any of the other major newspapers. PTI’s stated objective is to END corruption in the top hierarchy of the government by having honest PM and ministers and heads of major institutions and to achieve this in 90 days. Do not try to muddle the issue and trivialize the statements of IK. The cynical response was always there when he claimed he would bring home the world cup and when he vowed to build a hospital that would treat majority cancer patients free of cost. But while the cynics continued their negativity, he went on and actually ACHIEVED what he set out to do.
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You have no idea, Imran Khan’s middle name is Aladin and he has a magic lamp.
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Well and timely said
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u urself said….not literally…just listen to him when he says he will do it…he says the corruption at high level..and that is possible..he does not have to run in bazaar and asking the traffic police not to take the 50 rupees….or go to offices and looking for clerks who take 100 rupees to forward ur documents…we are stupid and naive and u r very clever?…ha..how hard it is stop the corruption of bilour in railways…he said it will take 19 days…i say one day..dismiss bilour..simple..the same goes for every institution …the higher level of corruption..and then we are stupid…???..u writers…either don’t do ur research or just plain stupid..just sitting at home..get bored ..hey …lets write something …and i have seen him saying that he is a liberal..i bet u have not heard that have u..becuase u r busy writing nonsense..u have the mind of a child who takes everything imran khan says and turn it around to make it look wrong…and then tell us we are stupid…the same goes for taliban..
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I am not a blind Imran Khan follower and I agree with everything you said over here, but aren’t you being pessimist? IK does boast about the corruption and terrorism, but your article was more like a charge sheet against him. I like your articles usually but I found this biased. I would really like you to write a similar article for Nawaz and other people in politics. Let’s see if you do justice.
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Only one hope of pak is imran khan, the rest are tested , and tell me who u want to be ur ruller, Zaradari, NS. when u criticize IK, check the alternative too. IK is quite clear on each and everything. Plz Chose the best of the available not blaming the best. Recommend
Fine. He lies, exaggerates, says we should have peace with the taliban (which by the way the beloved america of yours is also saying now), etc etc etc.
But the argument that he is the best option we have will always stand. Unless of course you are telling me (which sadly I think you probably are) is to vote for zardari, gilani, rehman malik their sons (who clearly deserve power) and the lot. And don’t get me started on the “good people” in the PPP. There are none, or at least none left. BB, may she rest in peace, is not alive. Neither is her father. Stop voting in their name. And the others, well, where have they been? Why did they not stand up to AZ while he looted every last paisa. Why do they not say anything when they see that now we have bilawal and gilani’s son holding strong positions in the party. Ill tell you why, because they are all in it for themselves as well. “Good people” who won’t do anything are really good for nothing! 100% potential but 0% effort is worthless, in fact, as we have seen it’s detrimental !
So thanks for all your critisicm of IK, but if you have a better option (which PPP aint’!), please do let me know.
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This article is a complete waste of space.You could have written only two lines “people keep electing the same parties and dont try a new person”
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Pity for PTI!
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@Author
From Dharna to Scandinavian Welfare Khan is quite a trip. Welfare costs a nice sum of money. I have no idea how much taxes is the Pak government able to collect, I don’t mean the sum collected by a police man for traffic violations but what is the effective deposit in the exchequer?
In Denmark the average percentage of tax paid to the commune(Local Body) and the State is around 57% of income earner. In Sweden VAT(Value Added Tax) is 25%. After protests on books and a couple of other things 18% is levied now. Mind you, this is the price one pays from the monthly income from which around 50% has already been deducted by the employer.
Every single person, from a parson to pensioner has to pay taxes, except diplomats of other countries.
Health (the patient is obliged to pay a certain percentage of costs), school age children all health care and dental service free. education, books, stationary etc are free so is the university education.
Listed here just a handful of things that are part of the welfare structure and is similar in the whole of Scandinavia.
Was it nineteen or ninety days would be required for implementing all this?
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Another useless article trying to pull the leg of the only man who actually professes to achieve something in this country. Recommend
He does not support Taliban and has never done so. If asking for dialogue is too much to ask or some people then they are beyond repair. The whole world is talking to them. You will probably love him if he propagates more war an killing.
Besides you may have chosen to ignore what he said. He clearly stated that major advances can be made towards eliminating corruption within a very short period of time. And that seems entirely doable if the support for the corrupt from the top is immediately removed. Why not? We Pakistanis are not corrupt by birth. Most people do it because the system forces them to do so!
And no his supporters are not fascist. We believe that Pakistan is a great country and given right leadership we can do wonders. InshAllah.
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Well the headline was enough & saved my time. When right from the first point the writer wanted to prove Imran Khan as a clean liar, there was no point in reading the full article.Recommend
The author has done an outstanding job of cherry picking various things Imran has said, removing the qualifications and contexts and then criticizing the result. I am reminded of right wing rants about how healthcare policy in the US will involve creating death panels for elder citizens.
I wont attempt to counter the author’s quite ludicrous arguments point by point, though this can easily be done. I will merely point out that the argument of Imran being the lesser evil that the author has so haughtily dismissed is in fact an outstanding one. I vividly recall Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn advising people to vote for the Democratic nominee in the last two presidential elections just because the alternative was so much worse. This had absolutely nothing to do with how good or bad Obama was, it was simply a necessary choice. The author has missed the basic point that decisions about voting cannot be taken in a vacuum and must take into account the ground situation.
That said, the author is welcome to vote for Zardari and Nawaz Sharif and endure another five years of corruption, load shedding, bankruptcy of the treasure, runaway inflation and the complete lack of rule of law. Recommend
This again?!
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Well written Saroop.
Now you need a helmet, a thick vest and very tinted dark sunglasses to absorb the abuse that will be coming your way from the followers of “Dear leader”.
Logic, tolerance, reason, debate, empathy are all foreign words for the trolls (supporters) of Kaptaan. They see no evil and hear no evil and do not even want to subject the party and its policy to any scrutiny yet are the first ones to shout about ‘justice’ and democracy which at their core involve tolerating a dissenting point of view and understanding or empathising with others..
Sad, that this party will be doomed not because of its inability to deliver on the impossible task of ‘rooting out corruption in 19 days” but because of its highly intolerant and borderline abusive supporters that simply have no stomach for reason and debate.
Haris
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Good Read. I will subscribe to your newsletter.
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I’m not an IK fan and I have read far better articles bashing IK than this. It’s a disgrace to the IK bashing phenomenon. Recommend
Very well written! I dont much care about Imran lying about eradicating corruption since that is just harmless rhetoric but im very much disturbed by his views on the taliban and women and for that reason alone I`d vote for the MQM!
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Saroop as always had been listening to the wrong Imran Khan as IK of PTI hasnt been saying all this ..None of the things described above have any Fact in it.Recommend
Saroop be ready to receive “best appreciations” from PTI supporters for writing this more blunt critical piece on politics of “Kaptan “but here I am totally agree with you point by point and strongly agree on the point of fascist tendency in PTI politics.
Responsible opposition is one of the important attributes of successful democracies, unfortunately completely disappear in third world countries, and finally resulted in lack of trust on political system itself. In this case Pakistan is the worst place, here people are so addict to use religion’s rhetoric, that has already changed this society a hypertension and dangerously polarized.
I want to put PTI future in one sentence and That is “I never read or know about any party or leaders in history who successfully used “abusive language” to win an election.
PTI was a bubble and it has burst already,
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Cool story bro. Still voting for Imran Khan though.
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What a wonderfully biased and opinionated article. Some of the things IK says can be put down to electoral bluster which is the norm in politics. I would advise you to watch the US debates and realize that this is quite common. Imran Khan is giving hope to us who are tired of the incumbents or their ever ready replacements. Imran is giving us a third force which is good for this country. His personal honesty compared to the other so called leaders we have is stark. By others i refer mostly to Zardari and Sharif because they are the leaders of the biggest parties at the moment. Mr Ijaz can you give us one good reason why we should support these exposed and repeatedly tried options again. Their personal/financial/ethical deeds are in front of us all. We now see a messiah on the horizon, no he is not perfect nor even close but compared to what we have as the other options I would say he is more viable and I pray our country gets him as a leader. Recommend
Form a radical Islamist group, hit the cities, widow the women, orphan the children, desecrate mosques and tombs, and yes, don’t forget to bomb the schools; that’s your only way in to the Caliph Khan’s office. Hurry up, Ameer ul Momineen is waiting.
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BRILLIANT & NAILED IT!
WAIT for the wrath of Torus now :P
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Imran Khan gave reasons an methods/logic how he could achieve what he proclaims to do
but what have you written in your article to prove that what he proclaims is not doable.
if you( the author) mustered up the courage and took the stress to write this article, it would have been really helpful had you also narrated and explained with reason why exactly do you think what you reflect in your article.
in my opinion your article was not at all convincing, the only readers who would have enjoyed/understood your article are those who feel light hearted at every adversary aimed at PTI
I am so unconvinced by your hollow logics!!!!!!
Ahsan Javed
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I am sick and tired of analysis after analysis why we should not support IK/PTI.. why don´t you give us pakistanis a solution..what is the alternative to PTI? Kindly give us concrete solutions!!!!
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The analysis is deficient because the writer has ignored the alternative between mendacity & imbecility; misjudgement. Yes, a misjudgement this severe seems incredible, but given a certain pattern of thought it is only logical. Highly intelligent men have been know make errors of judgement. Einstein, arguably the most brilliant man of the last century, implicitly rejected the theory of continental drift. The context is that it wasn’t his area of expertise, and had he lived, a man of his mind would’ve willingly accepted his mistake. Imran Khan is no Einstein, so it is only more understandable how he could pronounce statements resulting from serious misjudgment. The Khan’s Achilles’ heel is that he has no subtlety of mind; he cannot see the grays. Many people in FATA are in fact antagonized when drones kill their loved ones. Khan sees this and concludes that all terrorism in Pakistan is a reaction to drone attacks and other foreign intervention. He does not probe beyond the facile explanation which is only part of the story. A cynic could argue that as a politician he doesn’t need to, since he shares this jejune understanding with a majority of Pakistanis. From his inchoate analysis follows the pronouncement that terrorism can end in a few days. As he understands it, all that is required is to end the alliance with America in the ‘War on Terror’, and that can be done in a few days by a government determined enough.
His analysis of corruption is similarly immature; he sees it as a simple matter of making an example out of a few prominent bigwigs. Again, the analysis is rudimentary with a kernel of truth. There is a strong top-down effect in matters of transparency & integrity. A leader’s example will a have powerful impact on a whole organization, but when it comes to a problem as broad & multifaceted as ‘corruption in Pakistan’, there is no easy answer.
Khan’s previous achievements in sports and philanthropy are enormous, but both aren’t areas that require intellectual vigor. In his previous successes he never needed to understand complexity and he doesn’t now. What was needed was iron self-belief and that he has aplenty. So we have a leader in the mold of a Bush or an Ahmedinejad, absolutely convinced of his own righteousness and untroubled by any ideas that may complicate his neat, black&white understanding of the world. This is not deliberate deception, though it may in the end prove to be far more dangerous.
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Wonder how many days it will take IK to get rid of the $59.39 billion debt of PK!
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“Cross that bridge when you come to it”……. Mr Ijaz you are too desperate to criticize IK but I think it’s better to try him first. God forbid if he fails to deliver then your comment will make some sense at that point of time but not now. Besides, if we want to test his rhetorics and promises, the best way of his acid test is to vote for him and see whether he delivers or not.
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It was a good article until you started cooking up facts, which includes your analysis on liberals. If you please watch that interview again (http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=JCZdDlpvpyM), Imran clearly says that these are so-called liberals. He used the word ‘scum’ for people who support drones etc. and call themselves liberals. And he reinstates it again that he does not believe that these people are liberals but instead fascists. Hence, your analysis which uses the word ‘liberal’ in its true context disqualifies. Your point regarding the minorities has no factual basis either. And likewise, your statement, ‘Taliban now believe Khan to be a good chap’, is untrue. I will say try using Google for a change.
As far as the timelines are concerned obviously they are not meant to be taken literally. And I personally think its not wrong of him to do so, though you made a good point in that regard as well.
And by the way I am no fan of Imran mainly due to his stance on Talibans, but that is just my opinion. I can express it, by using facts to support my argument ..an integral facet your article lacked in the second half.
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He is genius otherwise he would not have gathered so much crowd. Secondly i haven’t seen more passionate and dedicated person in this arena at the moment. if there is a will there is a way
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Right, I am sure your leaders Zardari and Nawaz have a better plan, you should vote for them. Maybe you are just too “cool” to vote, and probably you don’t even live in Pakistan. In any case people like you, don’t offer any alternative other than to criticize, and criticize. Maybe your “great” leaders, Zardari-Nawaz have a master plan to fix this mess that only you are aware of ?? And when IK says he’ll end corruption in 90 days (it’s not 19, do your homework first), he talks about corruption being done at the PM/cabinet level; and that will be done, since he is not a thieve.
And when it comes to terrorism, your lot supported Mush and his commando actions against the taliban and his duplicitous policy towards the US and now we are all reaping the results. Probably your solution is to just bomb the Fata into oblivion and then just bend over for the Americans. We all are well aware of your one point agenda, which is just to criticize. So go right ahead and vote for Rehman Malik and Babar Awan; while the rest of us will vote for PTI come what may.
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brilliantly written. tongue in cheek at its best.
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I think Imran Khan is right and we support him for his programs. Imran does not say anything which he can’t do. I do not think Imran Khan ever said 19 days to uproot corruption. He said 90 days. Tribune did not quote correctely.
Imran is very much trust worthy and have more Credibility than any other Polititian in Pakistan.
This type of writer just want to keep status qou in Pakistan and keep Pakistan going as it was in last 65 years but we do not want status quo. We only have one hope for Pakistan and we will support Imran with all the way to Election and make him win.
Imran Khan will be better Prime Minister than other family business polititians who are running country for the last 65 years.
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Excellent analysis of the political philosophy of the so called Kaptaan.( Imran Khan)
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lol…funny man…bias article..didnt bother reading more than 3 lines
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The short way to political power is through promises that cannot be kept. The hard way is to design a system that will allow each the freedom to work and live as he wishes – without encroaching on the rights of others. In doing what he is, IK is demonstrating that he has learned the games politicians play and is ready to play their games with them. We need a new game with new rules to bring out our best. How about a game in which the prize is prosperity and the rules require work to gain prosperity?
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Dear Author !
If Pakistan has an honest PM and Cabinet, the major corruption in mega projects will not be possible from that day on wards. On the other hand your second point about eradicating terrorism makes sense.
However my humble request to you is that now it is time for you to write some thing positive about Imran Khan. You are consistently enumerating his deficiencies. Every individual has some limitations and at the end of the day it is Allah’s rule to draw final conclusion on weighing the plus and minus of an individual. On the whole Imran Khan is far better than his competitors.
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no man can put it more eloquently than Mr Ijaz. Bravo Sir!
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I hope for your sake that you are prepapred for the abuse heading your way from PTI-wallah. They, like you, take Mr Imran Khan more seriously than he deserves.
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Should the common man’s views really matter to a journalist? Just curious!
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When a large section of the voting population and their passionate arguments are right-of-centre, any triangulation exercise would place an aspiring (relative) newcomer somewhere in the region of Imran Khan. His loopy claims may come to naught soon, but then voters in the sub-continent are often motivated to reward or punish the incumbent for his/ her performance, and what IK needs is to become the next-best alternative. His support for an Islamic welfare state and anti-America talk has endeared him to many a devout muslim (and most of the Taliban sympathizers), while his proven honesty, social welfare credentials and anti-corruption rants have impressed quite a few liberals as well. Icarus Khan? Possibly.
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Bravo! IK will be a re incarnation of polpot in Pakistan, if he comes to power he will finish krupshun in 19 days by killing everyone of those “Liberal scum”.
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Imran Khan seems to be another Politician making tall claims. His love for the Taliban is misplaced. Citizens will eventually realize that it needs more than a sweet tongue for any Politician to get the country out of the woods. From Khan’s statements it is quite clear he does not have a clue on what ails Pakistan.
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Absolutely agree with Mr.Saroop Ijaz in this excellent, truthful exposure of Imran Khan. Why would Imran make such an outright , brazen false statement that he would eliminate corruption in 19 days (why not 20?) and terrorism in 90 days? I think because he really thinks our people are completely stupid to fall for for such laughable lies. As far as further proof of his hypocrisy is concerned , his party officials, like Javed Hashmi, are now shamelessly descending on the shores of America to collect funds from the very country that he condemns and criticizes almost daily. Why we can;t find better, rational, sincere, smart, progressive, modern leaders when there are quite a few men and women of high caliber and statesmanship in our country? Imran unfortunately doesn’t seem to have it what it takes to yank the country out of the huge hole it has dug for itself and to move it forward?
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@Saroop: Its a very personal attack without logic. Mere thoughts of ‘doomsday scenraio dreaming someone’ who couldn’t find a better article to get noticed. Funniest part is the last para…basically defensive stance before getting thrashed by the ET readers. “A paid-to-write article”
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U have always been a critic of Imran….. one should be independent if he is writing about someone else….
I have a suggestion for you…. Vote for Nawaz or Zardari and expect something different from them. Goodluck in that…
Even if he accomplishes 50% of what he says…. that would be a significant change….
Me and my family will still vote for Imran….
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God..Everyday There is an Article against PTI and IMRAN KHAN…Really,ET!You Got no other work to do?Why cant you people Support an Honest Man Like Imran khan who has no Corruption charges on Him?Dont you guyz Think he Deserve A chance of leadership?Who you want to bring into Leadership again?Zardari or Sharif?
now iam pretty sure,ET will not Publish my comment…SHame on you ET
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Unfortunately, Pakistanis are now accustomed to settling for the second best, the “itna tu chalta hai” attitude have replaced our will to continually improve and evaluate ourselves.
The best and usually the last defence for PTI remains, “Well we have already tried the other options”. No one is willing to call him or any of the other politicians for their lies.
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Only a lawyer can write so elaborately about the points that are troubling us, the ‘liberal scum’. And only a PTI troll can make you sound incredulous in under 150 characters of unbelievable stupidity. Here goes…
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Seriously Man,what I’ve noticed in Express Tribune since I started Visiting it(Perhaps January),ET always publishes articles against IK and Promote Veena Malik..
Chakkar kiya hai Bhai?
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He is the first politician to talk of honesty and justice. That alone should be reason enough to support him.
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he is a joke.
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Okay, we get your point: Imran Khan is dishonest and terrorist apologist. I’m no fan of Imran Khan in politics either, BUT he hasn’t been in the government yet. The liberals’ beloved PPP has been several times and failed miserably. Why don’t you spend half of this energy criticizing their failures, that may actually be more fruitful since they are still in government. And the reason the PPP’s agenda will never catch on with the “masses” that blindly follow it is because they couldn’t tell you the meaning of “liberalism” if their lives depended on it. See how easy it is to bash the other side? But it gets us nowhere. Criticism, especially from papers like ET, should always be multi-dimensional.
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You raise some fundamentally sound arguments to question Imran Khan’s promises and claims. But if the choice was between him and some respectable political parties, our job, as the electorate would not be so difficult. But, as is widely known all over the world, we are being ruled by one corrupt party after another. So, what more harm can come to us to give Imran Khan/PTI a chance, in order to break ourselves from the clutches of PPP-PML(N,Q,A,B,C,D)-MQM-ANP stranglehold which is killing us anyways.
And, if the argument is that Imran knows that the promises he is making is unattainable, it is nothing new. Very intelligent people (Maulana Azad, Allama Mashriqi, to name two) predicted that Pakistan is an unattainable dream which will not survive more than 25 years (and it did not, as the country broke apart in 24 years.) Those very intelligent people were not able to stop us to support the establishment of Pakistan, so why stop now.
Then, there were others who promised things which they never intended to deliver: like, Roti, Kapda, aur Makan, and “Qarz Utaro, Mulk Sanwaro,” or “Pakistan First” and others who promised all kinds of revolutions.
Ijaz Sahib, give this man a chance. He cannot put us in more difficulty or ruination than we already are in.
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Calling someone a plain liar and especially a person of the stature of Imran khan who if this country (Pakistan) had a tongue would rate as among the top 3 sons of the soil.Whose nationalistic and patriotic credentials and not merely a political brag put substantiated with proven track record ;could least be termed Impolite ,improper and below the belt .
There are too many westernised liberal apologists amongst us.For them merely the mentioning of the name ISLAM bring a stingy heart burn .Thus if someone say that he will establish an Islamic welfare state is like hitting them with a big brick.Only WELFARE STATE suffice for them so remove the name of Islam and every system and leader works fine for them.
This is a pathetic trend to say the least.I am a liberal but that doesn’t mean I am ashamed of my Islamic roots and my identity as a Muslim.Imran khan is not a hypocrite and he is no apologist either.He is raised in the west and he has shined in the east thus he is in the unique position to be able to analyse the mindset of both the people.
He has his conclusions and he has devised his path and his philosophy after reaching to these conclusions .What our apologists don’t like about him is that he is not ready to mince any words about his political philosophy, he is not ready to follow the rules of hypocritical demagoguery which is called POLITICS in Pakistan.
I hope Pakistani could now see through naive arguments ,of creating illusory barriers between a so called LEFT and a RIGHT.because in pakistan the problem is not about about sorting out left or right but to differentiate between and right and wrong and devise a STRAIGHT path.
If Asif zardari is LEFT and Molana fazlur Rehman and Nawaz shareef are RIGHT then we might be needing an Aristotle to find the difference among the social and economic policies of the TRIO.
They all have common agenda, sustain there rule by hook or by crook and they are aptly doing it with a little help from a few journalist friends.
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Great article.
We, Pakistanis, need (and deserve) Truthful leaders like Zardari / Nawaz / Asfandyar / Fazl only.
Khan Saheb! You shouldn’t have been born amongst us, nation of dwarfs, bent upon pulling the legs of any Gulliver who ventures into the arena of our country’s Politics. We did it to Asghar Khan in 70s and are planning to do it to you now. All our intellect & wisdom will not go into suggesting something positive for reforming any shortcomings that your policies may have. We will simply crucify you, with our wisdom and intellect and opinion making skills, for the 65 years of misdeeds done to us by all leaders; except that after that we will vote again for the 65 years legacy.
And when we get another 65 years bashing at their hands, we will start crying “Koi Leader hi nahi milta, sab Choor hein”. Alas. :(
Over and Out.
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In this article a lot of imran khan’s statements are misquoted. If the author disagree with Imran Khan he should not atleast say he is lying.
In the interview with barkha dutt imran khan had actually meant liberal fascists who hide themselves with the label of liberal are the real scum.
Imran khan is not pro taliban he supports the people of tribal areas If Imran khan had said he doesnt fear taliban ideology it is because he knows the ideology of imran khan will be rejected by the people
.I feel reilgious extremistst are as harmful to pakistan as these liberlal fascists
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Then who should the people be hopeful on zardari nawaz sharif havent they failed us multiple times or do the people of pakistan want to vote for them again. If they want to vote for the same people again they should stop cribbing.
In my opinion people are taking it as a debate between leftist or rightist
In fact it should be between right or wrong
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Your analysis is absolutely biased. Recommend
I would rate this article as immature, biased and without objectivity.
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When a large section of the voting population and their passionate arguments are right-of-centre, any triangulation exercise would place an aspiring (relative) newcomer somewhere in the region of Imran Khan. His loopy claims may come to naught soon, but then voters in the sub-continent are often motivated to reward or punish the incumbent for his/ her performance, and what IK needs is to become the next-best alternative. His support for an Islamic welfare state and anti-America talk has endeared him to many a devout muslim (and most of the Taliban sympathizers), while his proven honesty, social welfare credentials and anti-corruption rants have impressed many liberals as well. Icarus Khan? Possibly.
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Simply LOL @ author
Ok if he is lying .. let us vote for him .. and make him to bring that changes within that time frame that you think is not possible.
He can’t do anything unless untill we vote him to bring in power and thats what he is asking for support.
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Imran Khan is better choice then PPP and PMLN, but let me assure you he will be complete failure, he lack leadership and vision.
Musharraf is the only leader with sincerity, leadership and vision…..
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I think writer said it all in following lines
‘.. Imran Khan is deliberately and consciously lying.
The spirited defence of this lie telling would be, even if he is, so what, all politicians lie, at least he is not corrupt etc…’
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After reading this!
♥♥♥Imran Khan♥♥♥
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@PTI troll 76:
@FURQAN:
@Naveed:
Thanks for proving that writer is 786% right ;)
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a much needed critique to Iman Khan’s approach. you said it well sir.
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The more you write the more we love Imran Khan. Bad for you that we have made up our mind. Good to see that those who favor or criticize are both talking about IK. He is talk of the day all over that speaks loud of his popularity and charm. Love you Khan Sahib,
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Completely ridiculous. The premise based on assumptions and twisted statements. The arguments could’ve been raised in a more objective manner.
Triangulation? It is ok be agnostic, but directly accusing someone of lying WITHOUT any proof just shows that you’re just writing the article to bash khan.
liberal scum? when did he ever say that?
fondness for the Taliban? opposing drones and favoring taliban are two SEPARATE things.
NON ideological? Islamic welfare state is based on an ideology-sad that you didn’t get it
Hope to expect better from you next time sarop
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I thoroughly enjoy seeing the reactions mentioned in the article being used in comments about it..
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Great critic.
Imran khan is over confident. May be his tsunami sweeps the election and I wish he does but at the same time he needs to be careful in what he says as our vibrant media will play back his statements over and over again as they play the loads heeding promises by respected PM.
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Stop complaining and give the great man a chance. By the way have you had a look at what the PPP/PML/ANP/MQM joint venture has done to Pakistan. I think this is a cheap attempt at getting some publicity by writing against IK; same as Sana Bucha?????
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Although I am not a big supporter of Imran Khan but PPPs slogan of providing roti, kapra and makan to every Pakistani is also a far fetched dream in Pakistani scenario! Political slogans are political slogans and if you try to analyze them then all of them will turn out to be “lies and triangulations”
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@Saroop Ijaz, brother, we do see what you see, but if only you could see what we see..
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To begin with ,
IK never said he will end corruption in X-days , he had said he will end BIG CORRUPTION in X-days . The writer needs to do some homework.Recommend
In my opinion, in Imran Khan I see the soul of our leaders who created Pakistan, for them the impossible endeavor were easy to handle and miracles took a little longer.I fail to find any Positive Mental Attitude in the authors article and all that the author has gone for is a biased, sentimental and uncoordinated rhetoric. My humble advice for the author is to go and see Shaukat Khanum Hospital,the University in Mianwali, an upcoming Cancer hospital in Peshawar, do you need more object lesson Mr Saroop Ijaz.
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excellent article… much needed critique of IK.Recommend
i dnt understand the reason behind the fact fact How the people get Soo much time to criticize a person who has been tested for a single time!!If A person in soo hopeless atmosphere ,i.e People suiciding n dying of hunger,when there is no rule of law And anarchy all around speakes Of Hope!! i didnt find anything wrong in it..I believe this is what Iqbal did!! For the first time,after Quaide-e-Azam.A man of substance is trying To get hold of the responsibility Of Pakistan,i feel sooo privileged,That righteous people hav woken up to save Pakistan!! we will still vote for Imran khan!! no what what you do!! A baised Article all together!!
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half of the problems will be removed as Mr Imran Khan would rise up to the occasion for oath and consequently give his Premier speech… man is capable, rest assured !!!
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IK is not a liar. He has a magic lamp to take care of all the problems. However, he would only use that when in power not before that. He also plans to bring in angels from outside to control all our rot and bad habits.
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I fail utterly to understand and hence characterize IK. Talking of taliban model of welfare state is a tragic joke at best and an ingenious attempt to deceive the common folk at worst. Taliban wreaked havoc on Afghanistan and if that is what IK is determined to emulate we all are in for a disaster more horrendous than the Afghans faced. The medieval mindset of Taliban has plunged this whole region into a killing field. If that is the sort of welfare what IK is aspiring and vying for then JI seems to be more progressive and enlightened as it opposed Taliban repressive measures which Taliban put in place when they took over Afghanistan. Playing politics on mullahs pitch for an Oxford educated is an enigma to me.
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@ mr-author
I am a die-heart PTI supporter. but for a moment i shall assume that everything you have written above is absolutely right. But then i also want you to give some suggestions as to how to resolve all the problems being faced by our country. criticism is easy. but we want solutions. if you are the one to give us some good suggestions/recommendations ( or better than those given by IK for that matter) i will be the first one to vote for YOU!
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I just wonder why the rest of the lot is being ” given a free pass to get away with the crudest of lies”. I have never seen so much criticism on anyone else. Recommend
This is quite a funny piece. The gist is as follows:
Imran Khan will fail. Because he is not accepting the fact that he will fail, he is a liar as well. Beacuse he is lying, he is fooling the people. Because the people are being fooled by a liar, they are gullible fools+ a bit of the pro establisment, and ‘taliban khan’ accusations thrown in.
LOL. Maybe Mr Saroop was writing a satire.
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Is there any button for dislike? Dear author you miserably failed to establish your argument.
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Well, to me these are very valid points and i personally think Imran Khan is lying to our nation. But i’m afraid writer of this article is about to face lots of abusive language by betrayed PTI fans since he has criticized IK. May God protect you…
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Mr Saroop has totally misunderstood why people are supporting IK. Its not because he will end corruption in 90 days and not 91, or 190..but because people think that if anyone is capable of ending corruption in Pak its him. Same goes for Terrorism. As well as other ills in the country. Whether he will deliver or not, or will fail cannot be judged NOW…when PTI is not in power.
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What a country this is? Thief’s are free to plunder and men with integrity are questioned!
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With General stepping down one can understand the graph of PTI now. I was a true follower of Imran until he started inducting corrupts in his party. Ofcourse, he has got magical stick that who so ever join his cause become pure. Who give Imran the license that he is only Mr clean. One of Imran’s follower, Shazad Roy rightly said that pious is one, who has never got the chance. Once in power you can easily find how much Mr clean he will be. With lit of respect for the guy, I need realistic and rational responses from the guy rather than just roaring that he I’ll eradicate all the garbage of 64 years in days. Be realistic guys. Secondly, he is lying to get two extremes of this society along with them. He cannot ride in two boats for long and it’s indeed more dangerous. Being an X follower of Imran, I request him to be realistic, rational and honest in his approach.
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Great Article! However the most worrying bit like the author suggests is the fascist tendencies of IK’s supporters who will respond to this article in their usual senseless banter rather than logical counter argument.
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It will take more than 90 days just to know who is who in the Govt. Making tall promises like all other tried out politicians is putting a BIG DENT in his popularity
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What i completely fail to understand is that ok imran tells lies,has no policy blah blah but why do then people protest against other parties governments.Its the people who have chosen these incompetent and corrupt politicians so now you must accept everything be it inflation,energy crisis etc. So people keep electing the same parties and keep suffering and keep bashing anyone who tries to give some hope to a suffering nation
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Excellent and timely. Thank you.
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The writer has a point and some of the reader comments have dutifully followed the usual pattern. However, Imran Khan has risen to such popularity after 15 years of being considered a nobody in politics, and that too primarily on account of how bad the others are and less on the basis of whether he really has the solutions or the grasp of our complex issues. One question Imran’s critics should therefore be introspecting about is where they were all these years and why they were unable to popularize a better alternative and a more sound narrative than the one Imran comes up with?
As for corruption and terrorism, the writer is spot on when he says that neither can be controled immediately within 90 days. And in fact people will be willing to give the party more time to deal with such issues, so why make such tall promises?
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I read the whole article and realized i wasted 5 mins. of my precious life. It’s inevitable, he(I.K) is the deal. Even if i agree (.1%) to what you’ve written here, i would still give the man the same amount of chances that were given to both the current and past ruling parties and then make a fair call ! !Recommend
That said, to be fair, Imran does have some good ideas on how to curb corruption, and the reason why an increasing number of people are supporting him is that they believe he is the only one who is serious in this regard. At the end of the day, it is not so much about whether this can be done within 90 days and how precisely we measure corruption and whether it has been ‘controled,’ but about a serious attempt to do something about it.
On the other hand, on terrorism, Imran seems to miss the point. The solution will have to be long-term and it will have to be a careful mix of military, political and other means. Any solution that relies only on military operations is flawed, but likewise, dialog alone won’t solve the problem either. Swat is a clear example where a peace deal had failed and a military operation was the only other alternative. Secondly, any dialog must be based on the basic premise that the state will not compromise on certain basic human rights like education for girls, or the right of women to go outside the house and work. The distinction between resolving the issue through talks and capitulation or appeasement must always be kept in mind while pursuing a dialog.
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“Blabbety blabbety blah blah bluh…” – this article in a nutshell for all those who want to make better use of their time than to read a mindless rant from someone who doesn’t even have his facts right.
Dear Saroop, its “90 days” and not “19 days”. I would’ve expected you to be a little more discerning to be able to tell a slip of tongue (19 days) from an actual statement.
Secondly, 90 days is only meant to tackle corruption at the topmost level (i.e. the Ministers/Cabinet), and not a cure-all for corruption that happens the world over. I though you would have had the ability to read between the lines, but it seems totally otherwise.
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I am totally agree with author that PTI has fascist tendency and there could be disastrous in country if the fascists will not able to get sizable lead in coming election. On this point I am sure they can win only 20 seats in NA.
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Pakistanis, and Americans share some things in common. Both are allergic to the truth, and the facts. Both are an irrational, and emotional people. For proof, look no further than many of the comments posted above, vis a vie the Pakistani mindset. When it comes to Americans, one could write a whole book on the subject.
Main karai pa’say ja’vaan, main manji kithai danwan ?
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Is Saroop Ejaz actually sober when he writes this stuff?
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From the comments on this article, it’s 213:16 in favor of IK. I guess that sums it up for the author, and anti-PTI trolls. Enough said, case closed. LOL.Recommend
We are hoping against hope. Nothing will change in Pakistan and we will continue to suffer. There is a power troika and they keep on changing faces. The only way forward is for a youth driven revolution.
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imran khan Zindabad
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I find it very interesting that all the Kaptaan supporters are out to prove the writer’s point. What a cult!!!! I want to drink the koolaid too.
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Ok, so should I vote for Zardari again?Recommend
Uprooting corruption means, kicking out corrupt/incapable key high-ups and installing a new breed of honest and relevant professionals in their places (with a definite trickle down effect) and that can probably be done in 1 day through an Executive Order… 19 days is way too many for me!!!Recommend
i love reading the comments section on any article published about IK or the PTI. The way the warriors rally around their leader with sheer disregard to logic is fascinating. Everything that he does can be explained, deflected and buried by the virtue of the fact that everybody else on the political scene has been tried and found to be corrupt to the core..that IK is the only savior the virtue of which allows him to make comical statements in the very least without raising a question regarding his intelligence or worse still policy decisions.
I am an IK fan, but what really ticks me off is the complete deviation from anything logical and substantial being offered by him, his support for hate mongers of the Pakistan Defence Councils, his absolute silence when minorities are shot and bombed, when schools are bombed…. of course everything is overshadowed by the drones, nothing else matters….
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IK may be gullible, uncertain about the workings of the govt and its functionaries, and dissociated from the common man. OK and he may be more right wing than i would like. But he gets full marks for being honest, and showing results.
Who in the current running can we say that about?? they are to a man people of poor moral character , bad education and know every way to make quick bucks at the nations expense.
We have been on this merry go round for more that a decade and know how it runs. Why not give change a chance? he cant possibly do worse in my book.
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I will not vote for PTI if you can only prove that the current bunch of looters who have taken multiple turns and ruled in government are better than Imran Khan??? Lets give IK atleast 1 chance.
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The writer has raised some valid questions but he has gone too far in criticising IK. The only thing that goes in PTI’s favor is that unless you give them a chance to come into power, all your questions and criticism is a waste of time.
Why don’t you write an article to ask all of your questions about ending crorruption, terrorism etc to the present elected government? or any other party that you personally support. Recommend
looks like most of the commentators didnt even read the article. Excellent article well reasoned n perhaps too sophisticated for pti followers to understand. cudosRecommend
You have a free hand to write whatever you wish, against whom ever you wish. Howeveryou need to write on ‘corruption’ from the point of view of the sitting government. Is the sitting government encouraging or cleaning up corruption?
Why don;t you write about how PM Gilani or for that matter President Zardari , are handling corruption. Why don’t you comment on how the recent Senate elections were conducted . Were these elections ‘corruption’ free?
the ‘Swiss case.’
Is the PM setting the right example by not complying with SC’s order to write the letter.
then perhaps you can raise the issue whether IK can clean up the corruption in nineteen days, ten days , 100 days. The fact he wants to clean it up is a lot more than what the sitting government is doing about it.Recommend
“It is sad that Editors of the Tribune have let pass the kind of language used in article. It is one thing to disagree with someone but quite another to use words like deceit, lies, mentally handicapped etc. There is a way to refute an argument or indeed build one without being nasty.
There are, in essence, two issues . One is Imran Khan’s vow to eradicate corruption and the second, what Mr. Ijaz chooses to allege, his fondness for the Taliban. Let me try and elaborate a bit on both. PTI and Imran Khan are indeed determined to finish corruption from the country and the vow is that ‘high level’ corruption will be finished in ‘ninety’ days not ‘nineteen’ days. This ‘days’ confusion is misreporting by a section of the media and it was simply a mishearing of what Imran Khan said.
Secondly on the question of Taliban. Again, a section of the media has distorted Imran Khan’s message. A letter does not provide the space to elaborate in totality his point of view but simply put he does not subscribe to militant ideology of any of the radical organizations. His point of view is that instead of carrying out a virtual genocide in the tribal areas through a military campaign, a peace process be initiated in which the local tribes take the responsibility of maintaining peace and isolating the dead enders who when isolated would be nothing more than criminals. Once they have been marginalised they can be dealt with.
A rare variety of liberals found only in Pakistan who actually want military operations, bombings, strafing and killings on a large scale. Imran does not believe this solves anything. Indeed, he feels it adds to militancy because of the inevitable collateral damage. He is a national leader who believes in bringing all the people together, whatever their ideology.” – Mr. Shafqat Mahmood Information secretary PTIRecommend
Mr Ijaz, well done.
As far as the critique pouring your way, I just want to add an observation. Oh are very lucky no PTI supporter here knows who christopher hitchens was, otherwise the avenues of critique would have magnified immensely.
Regards,
Fellow liberal scum
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Intelligent criticism worth analysing.
In a so called democratic system the PTI has established itself as a second option. I say second because all the rest stand exposed as a close knit club bleeding and slowly killing this country and its hapless people.
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@Ali Q:
you have done the best analysis of this article.. bravo and super good and decent way of analyzing things. Merit is applied. agreed to it..
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I am not a member of PTI. Here is my take. PTI is a deeply flawed party with a deeply flawed leader. They could be have been an “A” party, but they are not. To me they are a “C” party. Most of the criticisms of PTI are valid. The criticisms only show why they get a C instead of an A. I support PTI because they operate in a field of F parties. PPP, PML, MQM, JUI, JI are all F’s. If there was a lower grade available, I would give it to them. So I have a practical question for all those who criticize PTI. What are you going to in the next elections? Are you so upset with PTI for not being an A party that you will vote for one of the F parties? Will you sit out the elections and allow the F parties to continue? Will you support a new party that has hopes of becoming an A or B party? Where is this new party?
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Right, so Imran lies about his politics; Zardari is in it due to some “will” and Nawaz got into it because of Gen.Gilani! These are all known facts. Saroop Ijaz has reminded us time and again, but has not shown us the way forward! Whats the solution! Knowing what I already knew about Imran and his politics, am I suppose to keep voting for PML-N or PPP! Can I in good conscience do that! Would wait for an article addressing my dilemma!
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Worst Article every….. We all gonna vote for PTI…..and thr bubble will burst ;)Recommend