Sunday, May 06, 2007

The People Love Musharraf

Yesterday Shaukat Aziz announced at a press conference that:
“the government was not irked by the participation of a ‘few’ people in rallies supporting the chief justice. “Rather, the 200,000 strong pro-Musharraf rally at Naukot in Tharparkar can be called a referendum against opposition parties who have politicised the presidential reference against the chief justice.” (Daily Times)

In a separate report the Daily Times had this to say about Musharraf’s ‘referendum’ at Naukot.

Around 50,000 higher-ups of the Pakistan Army, police officers, district nazims, tehsil nazims, UC nazims, and officials from all Sindh government departments had been ordered to attend the rally. All of them, along with PML-Q office bearers from all levels of the party, arrived in Naukot on May 4. The higher-ups were lodged at government department buildings and in the houses and offices of the ruling party and its allies in at districts Tharparkar, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, Sanghar, Hyderabad, Tando Allhayar, Badin and areas bordering district Tharparkar. Special arrangements were made at Naukot and Mithi by the Sindh government and the Tharparkar district government. Residence, food and drinking water was provided to the higher officials. Lower-level employees of the government department were, however, made to stay in tents near Naukot. Many could not sleep due to the severe heat, and because of fear of Thar’s infamous snakes and scorpions.

What an amazing referendum Mr Aziz!

The isolated desert towns of Naukot and neighbouring Chalhar are together believed to have a population of 10,000 men, women and children. For ‘200,000’ (I wonder who came up with this grossly inflated figure?) to gather in the wilderness to hear General Musharraf must be seen as a 'wondrous' phenomenon.


8 comments:

Anonymous said...

But why Naukot was selected? why not Karachi, where MQM could have supported this asshole?

Also, Musharraf claimed that 70,000 Armymen r from Sindh. Can someone investigate this claim? Are they hiring from Panjab and posting ppl in Sindh, and calling this Sindhi army?

Anonymous said...

To paraphrase Ruskin: Some folks are brought with money, and others by praise. It matters not what the purchase-money is. The distinguishing sign of these folks is to have a price, and to be brought for it. Some folks resort to appeasement or sell-out, even at the cost of hurting and contributing effectively to the rape of the marginalized section of society. If this is not a betrayal, what is it? For them the ends justify the means, never mind unjust or unfair. Call it “bootlicking” psyche or Realpolitik. But there is an unholy axis that had been forged between these folks and the military’s corporate and political empire. The root cause of Pakistan’s dilemma lies therein, and the answers my friend is blowing in the wind!

Anonymous said...

"Can't Buy Me Love"
Expanding the military —Dr Ayesha Siddiqa
“After all, it will not .. be additional three-star generals but more positions for major generals, brigadiers, colonels and so on. Such an exercise in bureaucratic expansion will certainly make the present army chief popular within his service. Perhaps, it is one good way of taking the attention of his men away from the growing politicisation of the army and the general unrest in the country.”
Or perhaps, trying to buy the loyalty with more perks and more of everything for the army… after all they control all the resources of the nation. “Can’t buy me love!”

Anonymous said...

Caught a brief view of the Naukot (Tharparkar)jalsa on Geo. Shaukat Aziz is as usual bullshitting, there must have been a few thousand Sindh govt employees and a few more thousand hijacked locals carted there by CM Arbab Rahim, the bully boy of Tharparkar.

Funnily enough there were quite a number of chairs empty in the back rows of the front section catering for the kursi-nasheens.

I reckon Mush is now left with two choice:

Withdraw the reference and try and appease his opponents

Or declare an emergency and destroy the nation (and himself) in the process.

I fear being fateh-Kargil he will make a brainless lunge for disaster.

Anonymous said...

BTW - i am hearing that the Army has a new man picked to wear the uniform as they plan to strip Mush of his sooner rather than later....Anyone else hearing this? Apparently the Army feels he has discraced that venerable and very affluent institution. MAHI

Anonymous said...

MAHI I have heard rumours about rumblings among the Khakis.

Has anyone heard about Shaukat and Mush both hitting the bottle a bit too often and too early lately? Shades of Yahya Khan here.

The statement by Shaukat Aziz cited in Onlooker's post reflects a somewhat tipsy disposition.

Anonymous said...

Today's The News provides further details on the reality behind Musharraf's Naukot rally:

"A curfew-like situation developed in many areas of Sindh on Saturday when police illegally confiscated thousands of private vehicles to transport people to President Pervez Musharraf’s public meeting in Naukot. Small and large private vehicles were taken away from all small and big cities, with the Sindhi press criticising the administration for creating hardships for people.

Thousands of private vehicles, including buses, were illegally seized by police in Larkana, Naudero, Sukkur, Dadu, Mirpurkhas, Digri, Ghotki, Bhiria City, Shahdadpur, Talhar, Ranipur, Tando Bago, Kot Ghulam Muhammad, Tando Adam, Sanghar, Nasarpur, Tandojam, Tando Allahyar, Badin and Hyderabad.

This paralysed life in these cities; students could not go to school, office employees reported late for duty and patients were not taken to hospitals. Moreover, roads became deserted, but rulers denied any crisis of transport.

Daily Kawish wrote that transporters protested in several cities while they went on a strike in Jacobabad. The task of confiscating vehicles is always handed over to the police, whenever rulers want to show “large attendances” in their public rallies.

The daily wrote that had the police showed the same level of alertness as it did while seizing private vehicles, crimes would have been stopped long ago. Awami Awaz wrote children’s examinations were delayed due to the transport crisis and now they would be held in hotter days. In the olden days, kingdoms took it for granted they could harm people by occupying their belongings, and the current rulers are following their method, the daily said."

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=54821

Anonymous said...

Pandora Necklaces armlet We are committed to us a lot of time cerebration two things: personalization stations, the a lot of clothing your taste, and how to accept to Pandora everywhere. There are aswell argent and gold chaplet which are heavily bizarre and advised about specific themes.