Transitional phase of politics

Democracy has not taken roots in Pakistan strongly for a variety of reasons, but we did witness political transition from one generation to another. The politics of Bilawal Bhutto and Maryam Nawaz would be interesting to watch in the next elections, particularly in the presence of Imran Khan, who does not carry any such legacy, but could not democratise his own party as well, something which he had promised.

In the last 68 years, only one civilian government had completed its tenure. God knows whether we will be able to see another peaceful transfer of power in 2018 or not.

But, it would be wrong to merely blame military dictatorships for dictatorial tendencies in the parties and leaders. A mindset, the family legacy or personality cult also contributed to establishing undemocratic norms.

Thus, as a nation we failed to transform Pakistan into a true democracy for which dictators as well as democrats have to share the responsibility. Dictators would have to share more because they never allowed democracy to flourish.

Can the new generation bring about a healthy change or follow the undemocratic trends. Apparently, the rise of the younger Bhuttos or Sharifs, intends to follow the past legacies and so far have not come out with new vision. But, one has to give them time and at the same time, watch their politics.

The third generation of Bhuttos, has now taken charge of once Pakistan's most popular party, the PPP, none among Bhuttos were able to transform the party on democratic lines despite long struggle against military dictatorship. Today, the heavy burden is on young Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. In the absence of elections within the party, he was asked to carry the family legacy rather than the political legacy.

No other political family suffered as much as the Bhuttos, from hanging of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to assassination of Benazir Bhutto, but the shift of PPP politics from Bhuttos to Zardari, also brought an end to the legacy and myth of Bhutto. Perhaps, that is why when Bilawal sends six questions regarding today's challenges and how to revive the party, he does not ask as to how to democratise the PPP.

But why blame Bilawal when the veterans in the party failed in giving him a democratic party. I don't even blame Asif Ali Zardari, as he became the co-chairman in the presence of all the senior members, who remained silent at a time when they had the choice to democratise the party.

Today, Bhutto's myth is fading out and this is the biggest challenge for him. As a leader of the third generation, Bilawal has to give something new to the party and until his party sets some good examples of governance in Sindh, and give new programme for the future politics, PPP's chances in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa looked quite slim. He cannot lead the movement against corruption when his own "house” is not in order and he has to answer many questions about corrupt practices.

As we observed July 5, 1977, when the third and the worst martial law was imposed in the country, it reminded us how politics was further divided among biradris, families and cult.

The rise of Sharifs was the result of 11 years of martial law. Ziaul Haq's opening batsman, Raja Zafarul Haq is also Sharif's opening batsman as chairman of the PML, but the power rests within the family.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had matured as a politician and for the first time he made the Muslim League, which traditionally remained pro-establishment as an opposition party as well.

Now, in the presence of Nawaz and Shahbaz, their children, Maryam and Hamza, may soon take over if not in 2018, certainly in 2023, elections. Why like Bhuttos or Zardaris, Sharifs too failed in making the PML a more democratic party.

It would be interesting to watch when this political transition takes place and Sharifs legacy is transferred to Maryam and Hamza. The PML-N can face internal conflict during the transition, as some veterans of the party told me: "We have lot of respect and regard for Mian Sahib and the family. Same is for Shahbaz Sharif, but the post-scenario would be different than the one in the PPP," said a very senior leader of PML, on condition of anonymity.

Maryam and her mother Kulsoom Nawaz showed lot of resistance during the initial years of retired General Pervez Musharraf, but not in the manner in which Begum Nusrat Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto faced the prison or long detention.

The family legacies received a setback with the rise of Imran Khan on political arena, as he neither belongs to any political legacy nor his children are interested in politics. Though, one cannot predict about future political discourse, there is no future of the PTI without Imran unless he establishes true democracy in the party.

The PTI has emerged as a result of some disappointment of the PPP and PML-N. His party struggle from 1996 to 2008, during which it could only manage one seat and that of Imran Khan himself. His party reached the peak of its popularity in 2011, and become the second largest party in 2013 elections.

But, his promise to run the party on democratic lines faded out after the first intra-party elections. His decision to postpone elections for an indefinite period reposed confidence in leaders, which his own Election Commission declared as the people behind the rigging and restored them, reflected undemocratic tendencies. So, in the absence of democracy within the PTI, people do raise questions about the fate of the party after Imran. Is there any other leader in the party who could lead? Javed Hashmi is no more in the party, while Jehangir Tareen and Shah Mehmood Qureshi lead their respective groups, but unlikely to lead the whole party.

Thus, Imran would commit a big mistake if he continues to run the party like he is doing now. He has to go for party elections before the next general elections.

Though the MQM has a different structure like other mainstream parties and formed as a "reaction to injustice”, it too failed in setting good democratic traditions within the party. Unlike in other parties, its founder or Quaid did not contest any election but, as Altaf Hussain and MQM passing through one of the toughest period, the alternative before MQM is to transform it on true democratic lines, failing which could damage its cause as well as party's organisation.

Ideological parties like Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) also need to bring reforms in this transitional period. Despite closed democratic system, today's challenges for Jamaat are different than those in 40 years ago. If the JI is really looking for a way forward, it will have to bring more openness in the party and in its elections.

It is still difficult to say that democracy has taken roots or matured enough that vote would be cast on the basis of performance, governance and deliverance, rather than on legacies and ideological myth. But there is a hope that if regular elections are held, uninterrupted and political nurseries like local government system, trade unions and student unions were revived, Pakistan may be able to see a true democratic system, which still looks quite a challenge.  Therefore, the next decade would neither be a walkover for the Bhuttos or the Sharifs nor for those leaders who do not have family legacy but have failed in democratising their parties.

The writer is the senior columnist and analyst of Geo, The News and Jang