A new propaganda genre is churned by our ‘Security Intellectuals’. The misleading term ‘civil-military equation or imbalance’ is in vogue.  The term not only takes our military’s usurpation for granted but also tends to assume that they should share the seesaw with constitutionally sanctioned authority but ‘balanced-ly’.  

The new modus operandi of these sophisticated propagandists is not difficult to discern; thanks to plethora of perspectives available in post Osama scenario.  It’s very important for the world in general and Pakistanis in particular to know who is who in Pakistan before making any judgment on the nation or the country after Osama’s hunt. These ‘Scholars & Liberals’ will start with  popular but acquiescent critique of the Deep State and  insert ‘their-fed’ narratives in between, only latter to explain how or why ISI failed.

Passionate starts are followed by the usual ‘Punching Bag’ segment where the responsibility for failing to defend the un-defendable must equally be extended to the otherwise ‘Corrupt and Incompetent’ politicians.  Endings are closed with the usual advisory could-be’s and should-be’s, required for the country to pull out of ‘the critical stage’ . How long shall we endure these  ‘tests of time’ ? Well, one could have believed them, if not born and bred in Pakistan and abundant of information on the internet.  

It’s now more than a decade of ‘independent’ e-media and the crowd was never so confused. Twenty ‘prominent’ journalists were briefed at GHQ but as Fasi Zaka puts it. ‘briefing was kept secret in the interest of openness’. The guardians of faith and morality don’t count their own ‘Lifafa’ as bribe but rather a service to the cause of Pakistan and are busy taking minds for ride. For God Sake, how much is needed to live with grace and dignity.  Jalibs and Faizs are revered posthumously in this country while Jalandheris occupy the stage as long as they live.  It was indeed time to counter American media’s stereotyping of Pakistanis into one whole lot of Terrorists, Corrupts and Unreliable allies.

Mr. Ejaz Haider  in his article of May10,2011 in Express Tribune starts with,  “While the military was reeling from the embarrassment of the raid and its implications, the civilian principals were going ahead with the oath-taking of PML-Q ministers inducted in the government to keep it afloat even as it remains largely dysfunctional.”  Our view of present is always disconnected from past. We deal history in packets of events isolated and independent of one another. Truth is then obscured with emotional and unrealistic vows for future.

 Inclusion of MQM and the Orphan League was the Deep State’s game to isolate NS. Hence how could Zardari offend GHQ by subverting their plan when ripened? Had the military not toppled an elected PM with 2/3 majority, we wouldn’t be having most of the same politicians. Had the Army pulled completely out of politics this time, Civilian Government could have made some good use of their time and energies wasted in countering traps laid for them by the Establishment. Their touts like MQM and Q league wouldn’t’ have been milking the government round the year.

Mr. Ejaz speak with a typical military mindset. He smells like an old school tie when he  says,

“The irony, however, is that while this moment gives the civilian principals an opportunity to turn it into an episode and extract space for themselves, they are unlikely to do so because secret happiness at the military’s unease does not automatically translate into the ability to proactively take charge of the country’s affairs.”

 

Enough is the fact to shut him up that though there sits thieves, gangsters, underworld, militants, liberals, seculars, socialists, capitalists, Islamists, corrupts, boot lickers, conscience-less and some good democrats in that big hall up The Constitutional Avenue but it is more vibrant and has achieved in three years what your  ‘ Four Star, Three Wars Veteran’ could not, in nine years with all his men and horses.

This is the beauty of democracy. And not a single politician is pre trained for leadership or paid compare to our Gentlemen Officers at the PMA and yet these novices have always washed and sew the dirty and threadbare Shalwar of our Gallant Generals after every of their poo-ing.. Amazing that Rhodes scholarship didn’t help Ejaz realize that ability to do comes by doing and capability is not alone the Uniform’s prerogative.

He doesn’t keep his figures upto date or spreads disinformation.  Defense budget after two hikes,  has crossed Rs.900 bn mark this year. It’s $10bn and not $4.2 bn.  Revenues forecast for the year is  Rs. 1700 billions. Calculate %age spending of GDP. The American economy of plus $ 3 trillion spends around $400bn on military for keeping 735 bases on earth and fighting two wars now for now a decade. See the cost to benefit ration. Ours cant capture an inch except its own country and cannot retain even that for more than a decade. It can’t even fight its Arch Rival for more than fortnight.  Obama is proposing $425 bn/year for the next 15 years and has come under severe criticism and resistance from tax payers, media and the Congress. Can we, alone debate our Armed Forces on our National Assembly floor?  

 Politicians are humans not supermen. They too are fearful for their lives and that of their near and dear ones. Their Past? Yes but who is clean? Do we forget how mean can the Bandooqonwalay are. Do we forget what they did to political workers under Ayub and Zia, or still doing with Balochs and the Pakhtoons.  Forget Bengal, we were not born then and are not supposed to judge what we haven’t seen ourselves.

Read what he has to say at the end, “Given the consequences, the country cannot afford to leave these issues unattended. Let there be no doubt that a state needs hard power. Nor should this analysis be jumped on as justifying a pacifist approach……….”  They want more to avenge its shame at the CIA hands. Why did our Archaic Army thought itself in the first place to play against world’s ever strongest and sophisticated one. Horses were being shoed, frogs raised their paws too. Ejaz should learn to put only relevant questions one of which is ‘Why should small mouth think of big talk’.

Defense set as top most and urgent priority Mr. Ejaz rhetorically propose nation and economy building in parallel, off course with sucked ‘Gandheries’. Nation(Army) needs more blood and sacrifices. How about selling civilians’ body organs now?  Imagine, world thronging our CMHs for Kidneys, Eyes, hearts, Lungs, livers and  pancreatic transplants.

Under the same article, found the following two comments by readers worth mentioning.

One wrote, “Ejaz Haider, should be truthful enough to ask military defend itself through ISPR. When was strategic depth policy civilian government’s domain?

Another wrote, “Imagine a team comprising a teacher, a shop-keeper, a farmer, a carpenter, a mason, a butcher and a soldier were asked to develop policies for the government. That’s how modern civilized nations develop policies in Pakistan the soldier has the rest of the team under the threat of a gun – that’s the problem!!!

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