Politics anyone?

Politics is a strange thing. It affects every aspect of our lives, yet we view it with suspicion, shun it, refuse to engage — it’s dirty, it’s untouchable. We claim distance, yet it touches everything we are. Imran Khan is bemoaned for having committed that ‘fatal mistake’— joining the political process. The general consensus amongst those we call the chattering classes is that he should stick to doing social work, help people and leave politics to the pariahs. Which then leads one to the conclusion that politics is this thing that is not for the general weal. How such an illogical conclusion can be drawn is mind-boggling.

Pakistanis seem to be afraid of doing anything substantive about Pakistan’s problems. We are big on philanthropy, build schools and hospitals, run soup kitchens, plant trees and clean beaches but we don’t work on making policy and getting it implemented. The sense of doing ‘something meaningful’ is restricted to sticky tape and iodine solutions without realising that these actions in themselves are political. They give the government of the day more breathing space, space that allows them to get away with thousands of ghost schools, hospitals without facilities and environmental degradation of our beaches and mountains. They are not required to provide solutions for job creation or poverty alleviation. They leave the welfare of millions of young Pakistanis, who roam the streets eking out an existence with extended hands, at our benefaction.

Having rabbited on ad nauseam for years about engaging, I have decided its time, once again, to walk the talk. So I am in the market for a political party. Everyone I know thinks I have lost the plot. Are you crazy they scream, you can’t join that lot, they are evil, the others are corrupt, the third lot is fundo and the fourth are evil, corrupt and fundo. No party will let you do anything and if you want to get anywhere you will have to become one of those hideous sycophants who are required to shout louder than anyone else. It sounds like it’s over even before I begin. Undaunted, I have decided to soldier on and boldly go where no one I talk to wants to go.

In pursuit of this new career, I set about investigating options. Of course, every political party wants new recruits, so they all put their best foot forward, extolling their virtues, real and imagined. It reminded me of law firms in the US whose summer internship programmes are designed to lure fresh graduates — having enjoyed a few weeks of the best restaurants, theatre and a very gentle work schedule, they are thrown in the deep end and put in 20-hour days. Here, the best foot forward also tends to be an obstacle in itself. Most politicians stray far from the party manifesto and are themselves the very reason one wants to jump into the fray. By the end, what should have been a civilised discussion has disintegrated in to a shouting match. It gets worse if you have two politicians from rival parties, they forget all about the manifesto, about being charming and user-friendly and start slanging each other. Not good if you are trying to reach out to people and convince them of the need for engagement with the political process.

My first discussions were with the PPP and the PML-N. It started well, we talked of things that mattered — democracy, the need for all citizens to have a stake in the country and become a part of the political process. All was good for about five minutes, then the attacks began. They forgot all about me, I may as well have not been there, and attacked each other. The attacks were personal and unrelenting. It was unproductive, alienating and, in a quandary, I thought of options. Should one join a major party as that would be the only way of being in a position to influence decision-making, or should one join a smaller party with no real prospects, or should one reject all options and start a new party? Or perhaps the best thing to do is to continue the search and close out on a party of choice by January 2011. So watch this space.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 26^th, 2010.