Why Pervez Musharraf is Chitral’s hero

He helped us build the Lowari pass when no other leader cared. This man cared for Pakistan.

Despite the boycott of the 2013 general elections by the All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), the party managed to get two seats from Chitral.

This APML victory proved yet again that people never forget the leaders who give prime importance to their demands and are keen to serve them at all costs.

Chitral is a far-flung area in the north of Pakistan with scenic beauty all over the mountainous district. It is blessed with tourist attractions like the Kalash valley, the Shandur polo festival, Qaqlasht festival, hot-spring resorts, and the Baroghil festival. Despite being very close to Afghanistan and Dir, not a single incident of terrorism has taken place here during the last 50 years. The literacy rate, too, is very encouraging; among females, it ranges above 60 per cent.

Chitral is bestowed with many natural gifts by the Almighty. However, it remains disconnected from the rest of the country for nearly six months a year due to heavy snowfall on the Lowari Pass, the only road that connects Chitral to Dir.

Winter is difficult for people as prices access to Peshawar becomes near impossible. People get stranded, while thousands lose their lives in trying to get through the Lowari pass.

In these difficult times, Pervez Musharraf proved to be a messiah for the people of Chitral as he took unprecedented interest in the construction of the Lowari Tunnel project. The Rs8-billion project was given to a South Korean construction company and the work began in 2005. Within three years, the work on the 8.2km tunnel was partially complete and it was a day of celebration in Chitral.

However, with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) coming in to power in 2008, work on the project suddenly stopped. The main reason cited for this was the unavailability of funds.

During the five years of the PPP government, all the heavy machinery was removed from the site and a dispute ensued between the construction company and the government, over the non-payment of dues.

The people of Chitral were dismayed and a general sense of abandonment prevailed. They lovingly and longingly remembered their benefactor Pervez Musharraf.

Had Mushharaf been in power, the Lowari tunnel project would have been completed in time, they thought. The road could have been extended to Tajikistan providing a link between Pakistan and the Central Asian countries, as envisaged by the APML leader.

Musharraf decided to contest elections from Chitral on the demand of its residents. When he returned to Pakistan, cases were reopened against him and he was imprisoned.

Still, the people of Chitral voted for his nominated candidates, showing that they were still loyal to him.

With the indictment of Musharraf, a general consternation is found among the people of Chitral. They believe that he will prove to be innocent and eventually all the cases against him will be dropped.

The common people of Pakistan are not concerned with high-profile cases and the developments that take place on higher planes. They only need a leader who tries to solve their basic problems.

What happens inside the corridors of power in Islamabad or the tussle between various players of the game means nothing to the people. They only need an honest and true leader like Musharraf whose aim and purpose was to see Pakistan as a developed and responsible country.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 2^nd, 2013.

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