What made the government blink?
Instead of sitting in the gallery, most reporters were huddled in lobbies and the cafeteria.
Dr Hafeez Shaikh, the finance minister, was scheduled to complete the first reading of budgetary proposals on Thursday morning. But backbenchers cutting across party lines subverted the plan and forced the government to listen to their input as well. That their speeches seldom went beyond the ‘also-ran’ level is a different matter.
Instead of sitting in the gallery, most reporters were huddled in lobbies and the cafeteria, anyway, hugging and congratulating each other on the ‘success’ of their dharna. Since Wednesday afternoon, all of us have been rallying outside the parliament building to press for the establishment of a commission to investigate the abduction and gruesome murder of Syed Salim Shahzad, a young reporter with tremendous potential.
After maintaining an arrogant indifference for over 15 hours, the Zardari-Gilani government finally blinked at four on Thursday morning. There still is many a slip between the cup and the lip. One feels hesitant to report or comment upon them since it is unbearably hot these days and a sane person must avoid the risk of going to jail on contempt charges.
The reporter in me was still keen to find out what really led to a media-friendly change of heart, so late in the night. After much probing and visits to various ministerial chambers, one can now report that the appearance of some six PPP MNAs at the dharna had forced their government to have second thoughts.
The sources, this writer can trust almost blindly, revealed that the initiative to join the protest was taken by Nadim Afzal Chann, an unassuming PPP loyalist from Sargodha. Mumtaz Alam Gilani from Bahawalnagar, who incidentally happens to be elder brother, a high profile media activist Imtiaz Alam, also responded enthusiastically to his call. Nasir Shah from Quetta had already been saying ‘unpleasant things’ on various TV talk shows as well as Noor Alam from Swat. Farah Naz Isphahani and Nafeesa Shah, both former journalists, came to the dharna to express solidarity with their erstwhile colleagues. As an astute observer of power dynamics within the PPP, Nadim Chann also called Faryal Talpur, President Zardari’s sister, to convey his decision to join the dharna. After reaching the protesting picket, all these PPP MNAs willingly participated in all the talk shows, which were broadcast live from the venue. The vocal presence of the PPP MNAs at the dharna seemingly forced the Prime Minister to make his move.
Let me also reveal that some invisible minders of “Pakistan’s image” were extremely upset with these live broadcasts. Eventually they approached the channel owners with ‘friendly calls’. Nearly all the owners politely tried to make the callers realise that if the broadcasts were interrupted, abruptly it could lead to another scandal- en masse resignations by anchor persons conducting the talk shows live from the venue, which in turn will worsen the mess that has already been created by the tragic episode of Saleem Shahzad. One of the owners did try to oblige, though. This budding tycoon of various ventures has been bending over backwards to stay in the good books of ‘invisible minders’. He seriously believes that some day with their help he will become the political mover and shaker of Punjab. But he miserably failed to deliver. Despite his efforts, he was up against a cause bigger than his motives.
Already a group of 30-plus MNAs from his party had informed the PM in writing that a universal increase of taxes and duties on agricultural inputs was not acceptable to them and they would be constrained to vote against them. To placate them the PM had invited for a meeting on Thursday. Meanwhile, the President had been conveyed the mood at the dharna and the excitement that some PPP MNAs generated with their presence.
Late Wednesday night, the President and the Prime Minister had a lengthy conference call, which made it easier for the PM to concede to the journalists’ demands. For sure, the invisible minders of Pakistan’s image are not happy with this change of heart. But it surely is time that they start considering the limits of a democratically elected government with a sympathetic heart.
One more thing, with the established image of an ‘anti-establishment party’, PPP’s lifelong cadres can just not afford to see their old rival Nawaz Sharif hijack these credentials by making the right moves to appear as if tuning into the public mood at the right time.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2011.
Instead of sitting in the gallery, most reporters were huddled in lobbies and the cafeteria, anyway, hugging and congratulating each other on the ‘success’ of their dharna. Since Wednesday afternoon, all of us have been rallying outside the parliament building to press for the establishment of a commission to investigate the abduction and gruesome murder of Syed Salim Shahzad, a young reporter with tremendous potential.
After maintaining an arrogant indifference for over 15 hours, the Zardari-Gilani government finally blinked at four on Thursday morning. There still is many a slip between the cup and the lip. One feels hesitant to report or comment upon them since it is unbearably hot these days and a sane person must avoid the risk of going to jail on contempt charges.
The reporter in me was still keen to find out what really led to a media-friendly change of heart, so late in the night. After much probing and visits to various ministerial chambers, one can now report that the appearance of some six PPP MNAs at the dharna had forced their government to have second thoughts.
The sources, this writer can trust almost blindly, revealed that the initiative to join the protest was taken by Nadim Afzal Chann, an unassuming PPP loyalist from Sargodha. Mumtaz Alam Gilani from Bahawalnagar, who incidentally happens to be elder brother, a high profile media activist Imtiaz Alam, also responded enthusiastically to his call. Nasir Shah from Quetta had already been saying ‘unpleasant things’ on various TV talk shows as well as Noor Alam from Swat. Farah Naz Isphahani and Nafeesa Shah, both former journalists, came to the dharna to express solidarity with their erstwhile colleagues. As an astute observer of power dynamics within the PPP, Nadim Chann also called Faryal Talpur, President Zardari’s sister, to convey his decision to join the dharna. After reaching the protesting picket, all these PPP MNAs willingly participated in all the talk shows, which were broadcast live from the venue. The vocal presence of the PPP MNAs at the dharna seemingly forced the Prime Minister to make his move.
Let me also reveal that some invisible minders of “Pakistan’s image” were extremely upset with these live broadcasts. Eventually they approached the channel owners with ‘friendly calls’. Nearly all the owners politely tried to make the callers realise that if the broadcasts were interrupted, abruptly it could lead to another scandal- en masse resignations by anchor persons conducting the talk shows live from the venue, which in turn will worsen the mess that has already been created by the tragic episode of Saleem Shahzad. One of the owners did try to oblige, though. This budding tycoon of various ventures has been bending over backwards to stay in the good books of ‘invisible minders’. He seriously believes that some day with their help he will become the political mover and shaker of Punjab. But he miserably failed to deliver. Despite his efforts, he was up against a cause bigger than his motives.
Already a group of 30-plus MNAs from his party had informed the PM in writing that a universal increase of taxes and duties on agricultural inputs was not acceptable to them and they would be constrained to vote against them. To placate them the PM had invited for a meeting on Thursday. Meanwhile, the President had been conveyed the mood at the dharna and the excitement that some PPP MNAs generated with their presence.
Late Wednesday night, the President and the Prime Minister had a lengthy conference call, which made it easier for the PM to concede to the journalists’ demands. For sure, the invisible minders of Pakistan’s image are not happy with this change of heart. But it surely is time that they start considering the limits of a democratically elected government with a sympathetic heart.
One more thing, with the established image of an ‘anti-establishment party’, PPP’s lifelong cadres can just not afford to see their old rival Nawaz Sharif hijack these credentials by making the right moves to appear as if tuning into the public mood at the right time.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 17th, 2011.