By: Engineer Iftikhar Chaudhry
The politics of Pakistan is a long and continuous journey, much like an ox turning around its axis, yet never arriving at a destination. The same applies to our political parties and leaders, who revolve within the circles of changing circumstances and interests but fail to lead the nation towards genuine change or stability.
I never trusted that the 26th constitutional amendment bill would fail. People hold high hopes for Maulana, and a friend of ours said today that Bilawal will become the Prime Minister in the future. I added that Bilawal will indeed become Prime Minister, and Maulana Fazlur Rehman will become the President of Pakistan. However, it is also important to say that Maulana will never do anything that strengthens the position of PTI.
I am nearly 70 years old now. I have worked under the leadership of Maulana’s father in the Pakistan National Alliance. Believe me, if Fazlur Rehman were in place of Mufti Mahmood at that time, Bhutto would never have toppled his government, nor would he have been thrown out of the assembly through a seditious move. I am well aware of his personality; he is a strong dictator within the party who crushes any dissent within.
A few years ago, Hafiz Hussain Ahmed said that every party has a Musharraf, a dictator. I have heard Hafiz Hussain Ahmed speaking boldly on Pakistani television shows. I do not speak based on hearsay; I have been in politics for a long time, especially since I became aware after the 1965 war. I remember the day when a courtesan danced on the rocks, and it was written, “Do not ask about the state of politics in my homeland; the courtesan is in tatters among the spectators.”
I have also seen Mufti Mahmood and attended the rally in 1977, which took 25 hours to travel from Rawalpindi to Gujranwala against Bhutto. I have observed Asghar Khan’s politics, but the kind of astonishing politics I have seen from Maulana Fazlur Rehman is unmatched. In the last couple of months, he has been hailed as a hero in Pakistan, and everyone trusted him, but I have always said that when Maulana decides on his terms, he will leave PTI behind.
I am a leader of PTI, and I do not wish to make such statements. However, I want to tell my workers that we should not rush to judge our leaders; we should not say that someone is wrong, a traitor, or bad. InshaAllah, what our party leader is doing is for the best. We must remember that we are in a state of war; we are facing a war that has been imposed upon us, and our opponents are not small players.
I saw that Mian Aslam, the Deputy Amir of Jamaat-e-Islami, was holding a meeting at his house attended by Chaudhry Nisar, Imran Khan, and other leaders of the APDM. Qazi Hussain was also present; the MMA government was in power in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Maulana Fazlur Rehman was the opposition leader at the center. The discussion was stalled over the resignation of the MMA government. Qazi Hussain Ahmed repeatedly said that Maulana Fazlur Rehman had gone to Mecca and that I had spoken to him, and he mentioned that they would resign. I told Imran Khan to remember my words: Maulana Fazlur Rehman will never do that; instead, he will benefit from it.
Although the Senate is still incomplete today, they have passed the amendment. Maulana says that we have broken the fangs of this snake. No, Maulana, that is not true; you never genuinely oppose. You saved yourself when the attack on Lal Masjid happened. I remember I was the Deputy Secretary of Information for Imran Khan, who adopted the stance that we oppose all kinds of oppression; oppression by anyone is unacceptable.
You know what happened after the attack on Lal Masjid, how many bodies fell, how many bomb blasts occurred—history teaches no one anything. After the Lal Masjid incident, Pakistan witnessed immense consequences. People wonder why they do not learn; we have seen it with our own eyes that any oppressor does not remain alive forever. Many have come and gone. There was once a monarch, Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was denied a grave for burial. What examples can I cite that people can understand?
Today, Maulana Fazlur Rehman has systematically defeated his opponents in the political arena and achieved his goal, having satisfied his own interests.
We must understand how much effort PTI has made in the past, and I firmly believe that together we can face every challenge. We must value the hard work of our workers and remain steadfast on a strong platform.
In conclusion, I believe that considering Pakistan’s future, it is not far-fetched to see Bilawal Bhutto becoming Prime Minister and Maulana Fazlur Rehman becoming President. Throughout his political journey, Maulana has prioritized his own interests, and today he has outmaneuvered all his opponents. Yes, as stated in the Holy Quran, people plot, and Allah is the Best of Planners. Friends, I say do not be anxious; InshaAllah, our struggle will continue. I sometimes ponder when will this circle of Pakistan’s politics end; no one knows. What is certain is that we did not break the locks of Maryam Nawaz Sharif’s hotels, nor did our Shehryar Afridi extract heroin from Rana Sanaullah’s car. In Pakistan, there are other prisoners, while the Ranjha is taken every time.
