If an anodyne appraisal of the three and half years rule of Imran Khan and the claims that he used to make before coming into power, and after his removal from the corridors of power, three things stand out undisputedly. He was an incompetent ruler, a demagogue of the first order and an irreconcilable liar who took pride in taking U-turns on everything he said and considered it the quality of a great leader which he never was.
Let us begin with what he told Mehr Bokhari in an PATH interview before coming to power about the overarching role of the Army. He said “If I come to power I will never make excuses that the Army is not letting me do anything. If it so, happens it means that I am incompetent” What he said after losing power in this regard is “General Bajwa was a super king. He made all the decisions and the government could not do anything without his permission” What do you make of the foregoing claim and confession? Surely that he was incompetent, according to his own words.
He probably forgot that those who brought him into power would not let him have his way and could easily have him removed from power. When Zafrullah Jamali was removed from Premiership he told a journalist in reply to a question regarding the reason for losing the Premiership, “Those who bring you in power can also remove you.” General Musharraf in this regard said that he was not a Prime Minister material meaning thereby that he was incompetent to hold that post.
Imran was undoubtedly one of those whom the establishment brought into power to promote its agenda of predominance in managing the state affairs and was destined to meet the same fate as his predecessors. He enjoyed their support till the time he was found out to be incompetent and trying to wriggle out of the agreement with the establishment to work under its unchallenged supervision. He clung to power so long as the establishment supported him but as soon as the latter decided to abandon its interference in the political affairs and remain apolitical his government met a predictable fate.
During his rule he miserably failed in strengthening democratic norms and instead damaged democracy by not building a working relationship with the opposition, which is the pivot of a democratic dispensation. He transformed political rivalry into enmity and practiced politics of vendetta by instituting false cases against the leaders of the opposition parties which were never proven in the courts of law. Involving Rana Sanaullah in the drug-peddling case was the worst example of filthy politics, considering the fact that his government in the end admitted that it was a false case. His government also filed a wrong reference against a judge of the Supreme Court which it later admitted was a mistake.
Fake propaganda invariably has ephemeral impact and gets exposed shortly. Imran was the personification of power politics. Infact he took it to a higher level. That is why his claims for revolution fizzled out like a damp squib.
Imran Khan introduced an element of violence in the Pakistani politics which has ultimately led to disintegration of his party and possibly an end to his political career. The reference is to the attacks carried on the military installations on May 9 by the PTI workers instigated by PTI leadership, including Imran himself. The beeline of the former PTI leaders leaving the party and their accusing fingers towards Imran Khan for the tragedy has unraveled his satanic inclinations.
The popularity that he regained after his exit from power for all the wrong reasons has evaporated in the thin air. A narcissist infected with delusional hubris was destined to meet this fate. In reply to his accusations against General Bajwa after being ousted from power the latter among other things has also said that Imran was a liar to the core.
When I say that he was a demagogue of the first order and a persistent liar my contention is not based on my personal opinion but the false promises and lies that he has told and has been telling the nation. There is an exhaustive litany of his lies and ploys to befool the people which cannot be covered in this discourse therefore I would focus on only a few unbelievable lies that he unashamedly uttered to dupe the people. These include: Construction of five million housing units ; creation of 10 million jobs; keeping electricity at Rs 2 per unit; selling petrol at Rs 45 per litre; committing suicide instead of asking for loans and going to IMF; repatriating the stolen money; building Pakistan on the model of Reyast-e- Madina; not employing a person like Sheikjh Rasheed even as a peon; No amnesty scheme; introducing police reforms; not accepting turncoats and electables; not to indulge in politics of U-turns and claiming that he would not make an alliance with the MQM as doing so would be the biggest hypocrisy. He did exactly the opposite of these pledges.
Those who brought him into power projected him as the ultimate hope for the nation for a positive transition from an exploitative system to a welfare-oriented system of governance ensuring a better future for the teeming millions and terming it a revolution for ‘Naya Pakistan’. This caught the fancy of many who yearned for change. This feeling and impression was reinforced through a well organized and extensive network of social media warriors who persistently focused on denouncing the prevailing system and dubbing the rulers thieves and exploiters who were solely responsible for the prevailing catastrophic circumstances. The punch line of this entire propaganda was that the only person who could winch the country out of the mess it was stuck into was Imran Khan and anybody who opposed his narrative was corrupt and unpatriotic.
History bears irrefutable testimony to the fact that the fancies and whims of certain leaders assumed the shape of larger national interests and mass hysteria was at times marketed as the national pride and honour as they plunged their nations into horrible catastrophes.
The promised revolution failed because the leaders of the professed revolution, including Imran Khan, lacked the characteristics of revolutionaries. Though with the help and support of their mentors and persistent propaganda they created the urge for change in the hearts of millions by shaking their faith in the existing institutions, they did not have the alternative to consolidate the gains of this promised revolution.
Fake propaganda invariably has ephemeral impact and gets exposed shortly. Imran was the personification of power politics. Infact he took it to a higher level. That is why his claims for revolution fizzled out like a damp squib.
