“The US pro-consul in Islamabad, Anne Patterson, actually emerges as a shrewd diplomat warning her country of the consequences if they carry on as before,” he says.
Speaking about the army, Tariq Ali commented: “[Army chief] General Kayani sweetly suggesting [Awami National Party (ANP) chief] Asfandyar Wali Khan as a possible prime minister is a confirmation, if one was needed, that the uniformed ones are the real power in the land, sharing it with the US embassy at the moment.”
Ali was referring to the cables from March 2008 where, General Kayani informed Ambassador Patterson that he may have “to persuade” President Zardari to resign.
Referring to Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rahman as “the old bearded joker”, Ali said that his “pleading with the US to be made prime minister made me laugh. Like many others, he too wants the job and knows who can make it possible.”
Ali is the author of many books including Can Pakistan Survive? The Death of a State and Clash of Fundamentalisms: Crusades, Jihad and Modernity.
“Amusing but hardly a surprise is that Zardari has reassured the US that if he were assassinated, his sister would replace him and all would continue as before. It’s always nice to know that the country is regarded by its ruler as a personal fiefdom,” Ali commented.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 4th, 2010.
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