Altaf Hussain: A costly indiscretion

EDITORIAL : Daily Times

It seems the MQM leader, Altaf Hussain, has found himself in troubled waters for his usual rhetoric and firebrand speeches, only this time he may have gone too far. In a televised speech broadcast on different channels on Sunday night, Altaf Hussain went and said the unthinkable: separate Karachi from the rest of Pakistan if the mandate of his party was unacceptable to the ‘establishment’. As can be expected, this kind of comment did not go down well with the people of the country, and one would not be surprised if that included the referred to establishment. After the loud public outcry in response to this ‘ultimatum’, the MQM chief was forced to retract his statement, with the party faithful saying that his words had been taken out of context. In addition to these very irresponsible sentiments, the voters of Karachi are angry. Altaf Hussain’s party faces allegations of rigging and electoral fraud by rival parties as well as the public. It is being claimed that the numbers and votes for the MQM just do not add up, with rival political parties demanding a recount or even re-polling. With all these accusations and ill feelings against him, Altaf Hussain needs to learn a few lessons in politics. First of all, he needs to understand that Karachi is not his plaything. He and his party’s leadership have treated the economic hub of the country as little better than their private fiefdom that they can mould according to their whims and desires. Altaf Hussain has been in the habit of declaring things in the heat of the moment, which has in the past resulted in shutter down strikes and mayhem in the city. What has happened this time is that even the usually quiescent masses have said enough is enough. May 11, 2013 saw a newly invigorated Pakistan in which people turned up in droves to vote for their new representatives in a landmark turnout. Those very people are now not prepared to allow party leaders to do as they wish with their votes. That is why thousands of phone calls and messages have been received by the UK Metropolitan Police, urging that action be taken against Altaf Hussain, a British citizen, who the callers maintain is inciting hatred and anarchy and attacking the country’s sovereignty. The Metropolitan Police has promised to investigate these charges. This is the first time the nation has stood against such threatening statements that the MQM chief is famous for delivering unthinkingly (some reports speak of his trying to intimidate the media too). It would do everyone a great deal of good if Altaf Hussain and all others who think they own their constituencies and the voters in them, wake up to the new, more aware Pakistan.