The problem in Pakistan is BAD GOVERNANCE. Supreme Court has said so; hundreds of columnists have said so. Main reason being that the party controlling the Centre & the largest province lacks the spine and political will to tackle enemies of the State and establish writ of of Pakistani State within the federal capital! Why?
It is not that PML-N is afraid to use force. When it suits them they release their ‘Gulloo Butt’ and fire at unarmed Minhajul- Quran workers in Model Town without remorse and Ch. Nisar has no qualms when it comes to tackling MQM thugs in Karachi. It is only when confronted with the anti-Pakistan terrorist mullah Abdul Aziz that PML-N shy away.
One can only conclude that PML-N leadership are covert sympathisers of the jihadist ideology which was also evident from their preference to talk to the TTP butchers instead of dealing with a firm hand.
There is nothing wrong with the ISPR statement. Here is an article about the anti-State Lal Masjid mullah who would have been put behind bars long ago in any other country. If this is not bad governance, then what is it?
Lal Masjid memories
EDITORIAL
IN Pakistan, the feeling of déjà vu is all too familiar. We seem to be constantly moving in vicious circles, failing to learn from our many errors and, therefore, doomed to repeat them.
To most, the words Lal Masjid conjure up images of the 2007 fiasco that can be considered as the starting point of the current wave of terrorism that confronts Pakistan.
In most countries, the elements responsible for orchestrating a rebellion against the state would be behind bars, or worse. Not in Pakistan.
Take a look: Security beefed up as Lal Masjid cleric launches fresh movement in Islamabad
Here, one of the masterminds of the Lal Masjid episode — Maulvi Abdul Aziz — is apparently a free man, free to lead prayers and organise marches in the federal capital.
On Friday, he did just that, leading prayers in the Islamabad mosque and thereafter leading a procession.
The cleric announced he was kicking off a campaign for the “implementation of Sharia” in Pakistan, while he railed against “obscenity” and the “interest-based financial system”, as slogans of “jihad” were raised by his devotees.
This series of events bears an ominous resemblance to what transpired in the run-up to the 2007 confrontation, yet it is unclear why the state allowed the cleric to proceed with his plans.
This is a man whose name is present on the Fourth Schedule; he has openly threatened to unleash suicide bombers across Pakistan should he be arrested; he has spoken with great admiration about the murderous, self-styled Islamic State; he has justified the APS Peshawar atrocity by saying it was a “reaction” to the army’s actions.
All of these developments have occurred after 2007. Do such individuals not pose a direct challenge to the stated goals of the National Action Plan? Are they not the public face of the extreme militant right that seeks to remake Pakistan in its own twisted image through the use of blood and hate?
If so, then why is the state allowing them to carry on with their activities as if it were business as usual?
Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2015
Lal Masjid memories - Newspaper - DAWN.COM