The Londoner

By Sikander Hayat   1.  Pakistan must not be governed by family dynasties like that of Zardari Bhuttos & Sharifs 2.        Merit must be the only qualification for getting into government posts  3.        Everyone must declare their assets (held inside Pakistan & in foreign countries) before they come into public office. These figures must be verified by election commission and when that leader leaves office, he/she must declare what they have acquired in terms of wealth during their stay in office.  4.        Election commission must be free and able to hold free elections without pressure from anyone 5.        Pakistan army must never interfere in the government’s work  6.        All corrupt government officials must be brought to justice ...

The Balochistan government has chalked out a comprehensive security plan to ensure peaceful local government elections in the volatile province. Local bodies’ elections, scheduled for Saturday Dec 7, appear to be a major challenge for the provincial government in Balochistan, led by nationalist Dr Abdul Malik Baloch. The May 11 general elections witnessed violent attacks by separatist armed groups in the capital Quetta and other troubled parts of the province. Asad Gilani, the Secretary Home and Tribal Affairs Department in Balochistan , said 55,000 security personnel including 5,000 personnel of the Pakistan Army would be deployed across the province to make the polls peaceful. Around 18,000 candidates are testing their muscle to win 4,168 seats. Baloch, Pashtun nationalists, religious parties and mainstream political parties including the Pakistan Muslim League–Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) are contesting the elections ...

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif travels to Kabul on Saturday to hold "in-depth" consultations with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on how to promote bilateral relations and Afghan peace efforts.  This will be Mr. Sharif's first official visit to Afghanistan since his election after May's parliamentary polls.  A foreign ministry statement issued Friday in Islamabad says the Pakistani leader will also hold talks with members of the Afghan High Peace Council tasked with persuading the Taliban to end violence and join a sputtering political reconciliation process.  Read the full story here.  HOME 

By Sikander Hayat Recently Tahir Ul Qadri announced that he is going to lead a 4 million march to Islamabad to change the political system of Pakistan . He has also said that until his demands are met, he will not return from Islamabad. Not a very pretty thought for the people of Islamabad . So who is acting behind the scenes here? Who has asked Allama Qadri to return to Pakistan after a fairly long period of self exile ? Who is forcing MQM to back him in his quest to bring revolution to Pakistan? There are so many questions but very few answers. Two possible behind the scene actors here are Pakistan Army & guys from ISI but the puzzling question has to be this: Why now? Now that current government’s term is nearing an end and it will legally cease to exist from mid March 2013. Why end something which is ending anyway. It seems that army is terrified of the prospect that Nawaz Sharif might return to power and keeping in mind that this Nawaz Sharif is anti ...

By Sikander Hayat Sardar Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari was the eighth President of Pakistan from November 14, 1993 until December 2, 1997. He was the first Baloch President of Pakistan. He died yesterday after a long battle with myriad of medical problems. He was a top member of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and for his loyalty to the party he was given the post of President of Pakistan by Benazir Bhutto.  He was a PPP “jiyala” up until he dismissed Benazir Bhutto’s government on corruption charges. Asif Ali Zardari was the main reason then for the dissolution of parliament and end of Benazir's government. After this event PPP cadres & leadership never forgave Farooq Laghari for his betrayal and always called him a traitor. 

By Sikander Hayat In a nationwide address on the national television (PTV), prime minister has denied that his government or president Asif Zardari had anything to do with planning to remove judges. It seems that PPP is beating a retreat on this issue and want a ceasefire with the judiciary. But judiciary is no mood to listen. I do not know which way Pakistan is going to go in the next few months given the current climate in the political class of Pakistan. People on the street do not have any idea on where to look for help. People are hungry, destitute and during the current flood crisis even resorted to prostitution to feed them. Among all this pain & misery, Pakistan’s Judiciary, PPP & Army are playing a game of hide & seek. They need to realise that people on the street, the silent majority is sick of their shenanigans. Wake up now, you idiots, or it will be too late.  Related Posts:   1.  Why Pakistan Army Must Allow The Democracy To Flourish In ...

By Sikander Hayat  These days it is becoming a kind of habit for many people to predict “change”. Nobody knows what the change is going to be apart from the singular hatred for Mr Zardari. I must make it clear at the start of this post that I am against Zardari’s way of running presidency & his own party but he is the democratically elected president of the country. Those who have visited this site before know that I am also against the dynastic politics of PPP but at the same time I am against the dynastic politics of PML, ANP & others. One of the many flaws of democracy is that you have to accept the will of people and it means all the people. A person who thinks of himself as the brainiest in the whole world has one vote and a day labourer also has one vote. Pakistan needs consistency of government, that consistency where every institution is deeply rooted and not dependent on any one person for its survival. Pakistan has got a strong army, now a strong judiciary is ass...

By Sikander Hayat Dr Imran Farooq has been murdered in london. At the moment details of the events leading to his death are not known. London police has started their investigation and have cordoned off the area in question. His death raises very important questions immediately. 1. Was this an assassination or a robbery gone bad? 2. Was this a racist attack? 3. Did Altaf Hussain sanction this murder due to Dr Imran Farooq's insubordination? 4. Was he killed by his political enemies in Pakistan? 5. Was this a revenge attack by people in Pakistan whose relatives were murdered by MQM? Related Posts: 1. Death In Lyari Town, Karachi 2. Rural & Urban Political Divide In Pakistan 3.Pakistan Politics - MQM Campaigns For Provincial Assembly Of Gilgit Baltistan

By Sikander Hayat I am now starting to agree with Hasan Nisaar (prominent columnist for Jang & host of the TV programme Choraha) that it is the people of Pakistan who are responsible for their own plight. They have decided not to learn from their past and keep electing the same people & families to the national/provincial legislatures of Pakistan. All of Pakistan’s federating units have been made virtual fiefdoms of certain families. Why Pakistanis have resigned to the fact that Billawal Zardari & Hamza Shahbaz Sharif will run our future affairs? Why Pakistanis keep electing the same people again & again and then hope for change? Who is responsible for change? Pakistan’s election day turn out is roughly 30%, which means that 70% of the Pakistanis nation has decided to not have a say in any national elections. How can you expect change when you don’t vote? Pakistan’s destiny will only change when this voter apathy will end, when Pakistanis take it upon themselves to get...

By Sikander Hayat I am writing the following lines to refute the biggest fallacy associated with Pakistan Army that it is actually a Punjabi Army which takes care of the interests of the Punjab and does not take care of the other federating units. It is outright false and wrong to say such a thing because from the time of Pakistani independence 14 Generals have commanded Pakistan Army. Out of these 14 Generals 2 were British , 4 were Pakhtun, 1 was Hazara, 1 was Baloch, 1 was a Rajput, 3 were Mohajir and 2 were Punjabi. In 64 years after independence, Pakistan has been ruled by 4 Generals for 32 years. These Generals are General Ayub Khan (9 years), General Yahya Khan (3 years), General Zia Ul Haq (11 years) and General Pervez Musharaf (9 years). Not a single one of these Generals was a Punjabi. So much for the myth of a Punjabi dominated army. Here is the list of all the Generals who have lead the Pakistan Army: 1. General Sir Frank Walter Messervy was born in 1893 in ...