Army tells Asif Zardari to behave

With president Asif Ali Zardari busy settling political scores with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif even as Pakistan fast slips into chaos, the army has begun to flex its muscle. Army chief general Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani, who has so far kept a low profile, has asked Zardari to clean up the mess soon.

Well-placed military sources in Islamabad say Kiyani has been asked by the United States to bring some order in the region. After his recent visit to Washington, Kiyani held a meeting with top Pakistani Army commanders on March 6 to share the concern of the US over the state of affairs in the country, especially after the dissolution of the Punjab government and the subsequent anti-government agitation that has plunged the country into another political crisis.

The general, a former head of the spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), is learnt to have told president Zardari to set things right before the March 16 ‘long march’ called by lawyers and supporters of Sharif to demand reinstatement of Supreme Court judges sacked by former president Pervez Musharraf.

An apex court bench comprising judges appointed by Musharraf had barred Sharif from contesting elections and unseated his brother Shahbaz as chief minister of Punjab for alleged irregularities during elections.

The sources say the strife in the country, with militants and al-Qaeda steadily gaining ground in the tribal areas and the government busy settling scores with opposition parties, has compelled Washington and its prime contractor in the region, the Pakistan military, to bring some order.

Zardari’s bid to settle scores with the opposition led by Sharif has now gone down well with Washington.

In fact, one of the prime concerns of the US is Zardari himself. Media reports say that though Zardari assumed the presidency last September as an iron man, he has been more subdued in recent months. One reason could be the recently formed United Front of Mujahideen putting him on its hit list, the only politician on the list.

The president has already suffered a political defeat, a direct result of the military’s persuasion, when he lifted the ban on the Punjab assembly last week and allowed it to meet. The majority of members in the assembly belong to Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz).

This military intervention and prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani’s increasing closeness to the army coincide with a drop in Zardari’s popularity within his own Pakistan Peoples Party.

Zardari has been particularly outspoken, if not rude, towards some parliamentarians, including some from his own cabinet. He is even in danger of losing control of the party as he is accused of surrounding himself with friends and associates, many unelected, as key advisers.

In these circumstances, the situation in Pakistan is fast becoming untenable. Though Kiyani has become more active, neither the Americans nor the Pakistani Army actually wants to change horses mid-stream. Yet the country is becoming less and less governable under the present arrangement and quick action is required.

This does not necessarily mean getting rid of Zardari, but he could well be forced to make further concessions to his political rival Sharif by giving him a share of power. If Zardari does not do this, the military’s hand may be forced.