Editorial

Benazir is missed

Two-time prime minister set the ball rolling when it came to ushering in a new era in parliamentary politics

June 21, 2023

Benazir Bhutto will always be remembered as a pivot of Pakistan’s democratic transformation and dispensation. She thought and practised beyond her age, and was idealistic to the core when it came to passion with buoying public representation. She fought two dictatorships, undertook exile and was incarcerated for only one goal: dissemination of public representation. Born on June 21, 1953, she would have turned 70 today, had she been alive. Her extermination at a public rally in Rawalpindi’s Liaquat Bagh on December 27, 2007, which incidentally is also the place of murder of Pakistan’s first prime minister, is a mystery to this day. A scion of Pakistan’s charismatic Bhutto dynasty and daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, she simply pushed ahead the mission of her father in empowering the masses and bestowing them the courage to stand fast for their rights under the canons of the law and constitution. This is why Benazir’s life and death will be a role model for democrats, and all those who want to see Pakistan a pluralistic, liberal and welfare state.

The two-time prime minister (1988–90 and 1993–96) set the ball rolling when it came to ushering in a new era in parliamentary politics. Despite heading weak coalitions in both of her tenures, she never compromised when it came to root causes of people’s supremacy. The PPP chairperson endeavoured for a new civil-military contract after a decade of martial law, and went out of her way to oblige her political opponents in striking a debut Charter of Democracy. Notwithstanding a plethora of cases filed against her on alleged misappropriation and misuse of public office, she stood tall and faced the court of law gracefully. This is what makes the Harvard and Oxford educated Benazir Bhutto the darling of egalitarian politics.

Pakistan and democracy are at crossroads today, and in need of taking a cue from her struggle. Upholding the constitution and seeking course-correction from the masses should be the way to go. This is what the deceased leader had preached and practised, and has left behind a proud legacy. She will live on forever in every democratic heart.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2023.

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COMMENTS (3)

Ziad | 1 year ago | Reply After the execution of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Benazir s brother Murtaza fled to Afghanistan which at the time was under a Socialist Governance backed by the Soviet Union. Murtaza s brand of politics became heavily influenced by Socialism. He created Al Zulfikar an organization the sole purpose of which was to avenge the death of the elder Bhutto. In 1981 Murtaza hijacked a Pakistani Airways Jetliner. Over thirteen days the Jetliner was flown to Afghanistan and finally Syria. Pakistani Major Tariq Rahim was shot. Afghanistan s head of Intelligence Najibullah who later became President of Afghanistan was in close contact with Murtaza Bhutto during this time. The Hijacking culminated with General Zia being forced to release hundreds of Bhutto supporters who had been languishing in Pakistani jails. The event remains a scar in the history of Pakistan.

Ziad | 1 year ago | Reply Benazir could have been all that which this seemingly paid article tries to prove unfortunately she was not at all She was part and parcel of the culture of tyranny and corruption in Sindh. She allowed Asif to become the Mr. 10 Percent as she decided to shut her eyes to the rampant corruption and kickbacks Asif was squeezing out of every project. In 1996 Ayub Afridi the known drug dealer from Landi Kotal approached Benazir with an offer to finance the whole budget of the then NWFP now Khaiber Pakhtoon Khwa in return of an official permission to export drugs to the European markets. Benazir told Afridi to contact Asif. Asif demanded 60 million Rs 6 Crore as his commission for arranging a clear path for Afridi through airport and customs clearances. Afridi agreed but Asif realized that he made a cheaper deal so he told Afridi to raise the price to 120 million Rs 12 Crore . Afridi smelled Asif s greed. He asked Asif to send a close relative to receive the money 12 crore . Asif sent his sister s Feryal s husband to get the money. Afridi kept Feryal s huband as a hostage and demanded Asif to pay ransom and offered 6 Crore on each trip to Europe s drug market. Benazir sought General Waheed Kakar s the then COAS help to bring back Feryal s husband. General Waheed Kakar sent armed forces to Landi Kotal in the name of Fight Against Terrorism . Hundreds of Pak Army soldiers and the tribal area Pathans died during the fight that ensued. Finally a truce with Afridi was arranged and Feryal s husband was released from captivity. Later Benazir awarded 100 Acres of land to General Waheen Kakar. This is just one example of Benazir s legacy.

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Ziad | 1 year ago | Reply After a five-year investigation a Swiss court in 2003 found both Benazir and her husband guilty of a huge amount of money laundering and gave them suspended jail sentences of six months each and ordered each to pay 8 million to the Pakistan government. A diamond necklace worth 117 000 exposed Benazir s money laundering trail. In her second term as PM she had enriched herself and her husband with kickbacks from a government contract with two Swiss companies SGS and Cotechna. The money was paid to two companies in the British Virgin Islands Bomer Finances owned by Asif Zardari Benazir sharing its assets with him which received 8.2 million and Nassam Overseas whose ostensible owner is Nasir Husain Benazir s brother-in-law which received 3.8 million. Evidence of Benazir s role in Bomer emerged from her visit to London where she bought a diamond necklace from Knightsbridge Jewellers for 117 000. This necklace was later found in a Swiss bank vault. Benazir had a 15-bedroom Rockwood Estate in Surrey in England valued at 3.5 million and she owned four other properties in London. Jeremy Carver the lawyer of the Pakistan government in 1998 said there were at least half a dozen international cases of corruption pending against Benazir and Zardari in Switzerland the US and Pakistan. Zardari became well known as Mr 10 per cent. This might be only the tip of the iceberg of Benazir s humonguous corruption. In her second term as PM she appointed her husband as Investment Minister Chief of Intelligence Bureau and Director General of Federal Investigative Agency. This gave him a monopoly on the country s gold imports which netted him a cool 10 million. John Burns a journalist of the New York Times investigated the business transactions of Benazir and her husband exposing the mammoth scale of their corruption. By 1996 their takings from these deals were estimated at 1.5 billion. In 1996 Transparency International ranked Pakistan as the world s second most corrupt country. In the 1990s during Benazir s term as PM GDP declined to 3-4 per cent poverty rose by 33 per cent and the number of Pakistanis living in absolute poverty doubled.

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