Editorial

More questions than answers

There is little in what Mustafa Kamal said in the course of a two-hour news conference that has not been said before

Editorial March 04, 2016

Mustafa Kamal addresses a press conference in Karachi. PHOTO: AYESHA MIR/ EXPRESS

Twenty-four hours after the re-entry to the politics of Karachi by its ex-mayor Mustafa Kamal and it is still unclear whether this is a bombshell or a damp squib. When examined in detail, there is little in what he said in the course of a two-hour news conference that has not been said before, albeit rather more sotto voce and with considerably more caution. The plethora of allegations made against Altaf Hussain, including of connections to Indian intelligence agency RAW, involvement in murders of party workers and of being inebriated when addressing his followers from London are certainly not new. In the case of most of these allegations, there is as yet no substantive proof via documentary or other evidentiary material — and until there is, they remain unsubstantiated and have to be treated as such.

Equally diaphanous is the announcement of a new political party by Mustafa Kamal. It has no name and presumably no membership, nor party infrastructure and if it is funded at all we do not know by who or what and by how much. As to what all this might mean to the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), there is little beyond a somewhat muted response along traditional lines — nothing to see here, move along please. Except that this is not good enough in this instance. The Mustafa Kamal intervention is notable not so much for its substance but that it happened at all, and must have been made at some personal risk. It is an incontrovertible challenge to the power and position of Altaf Hussain and no other senior party figure.

The appropriation of the national flag as a — presumably — interim party symbol is a dramatic and possibly unconstitutional move presumably designed to create an image of overarching inclusivity. The tears midway through the press conference felt decidedly crocodilian, and the threadbare outline of a new political party smacked more of a contrived and transitional artefact than a bricks-and-mortar entity that may challenge the supremacy of the MQM. All in all, a paradox packaged in several conundrums, and only the coming hours and days will reveal if we are being tricked or treated.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 5^th, 2016.

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COMMENTS (4)

observer | 8 years ago | Reply So after PNA, MMA,Q League, Mansoor Ijaz and Kaptaan, the Empire strikes back with MK.

S.R.H. Hashmi | 8 years ago | Reply The authorities’ picking on MQM is nothing new and has been going on intermittently for decades. And the attempt at implementing the minus-Altaf formula is also not the first one now. In fact, with the frequent repeat of such acts, the drama has become too monotonous and boring now. So, it is more than likely that even this Kamal performance, presented by you-know-who, who took pains to prepare it as a bombshell, would rather prove to be a damp squib. However, with the excitement of a sixth-grader, and mental level not much higher than that, they keep coming up with such performances with clockwork regularity, being more than confident that this time they will not fail. And if their accusations against MQM and Altaf Hussain are anywhere near truth, how come Mustafa Kamal and Anis Qaimkhani maintained their association with the party for so long, thus becoming an inseparable part of the activities of MQM, which they are bashing at ruthlessly now. It was Mustafa Kamal’s association with MQM which brought about his spectacular rise to levels of Karachi Nazim and a Senator. According to MQM, the party had also gifted him a house which he did not return. So for a person who received so many favours from the party, to come back and make a most ferocious attack on his benefactors is a sure sign of a self-centred person, an opportunist, who uses others as no more than a ladder. Given adequate level of incentives – and maybe some threats of prosecution in connection with land-grabbing and other illegal activities which went on in Karachi while he was the City Nazim - he would obviously be open to ‘persuasion’, and oblige the initiators of such acts. Mustafa Kamal also claimed that it was fear of God, his conscience pricks and an intention to save others who may not be aware of the reality of MQM, that forced him to disclose, what he called facts. He also insisted that he was not afraid of death. If this indeed was true, he should have made the disclosure while parting ways with MQM, and not waited for an opportune moment to unburden his conscience. The move will come as a welcome bonus to Sharif Brothers. Our nation which lives in the moment, and is short both on memory and intellect, will forget all about things like postponement of the overdue census again, corruption-probe in Punjab which was due to start, but has not, and is unlikely ever to start as also government’s utter failure in nearly all fields, and will instead direct its full fury against MQM, and will demand exemplary punishment for the party, which it did not ask even for those who broke the country and yet others who have milked the country dry, while acquiring palaces and fat bank balances abroad. Karachi

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Toti calling | 8 years ago | Reply Altar Hussain will remain popular with MQM supportes as long as he claims that others are undermining the interest of Mohajirs. Many others have left other parties and have not been uccessful. The outburst of Kamal will wither away sooner than we can imagine.and I am not and I am not an MQM supporter.

Woz ahmed | 8 years ago | Reply I love the way we say RAW , CIA, Mossad or some foreign hand did xyz with no real proof. The British government in my mind is fair, the government comes under scrutiny and cannot use its power to prosecute someone unfairly, has Mr Hussain not been cleared of any offences in the UK to the extent that he has been given his passport. I am not suggesting he is guilt free in Pakistan. Do people recall the fake witness statements that were released that the Metropolitan Police said bear no relationship to the true ones. I have no love for the MQM but even less for those who twist the truth for their own gain.

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