Imran Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf, has won Pakistan’s General Election with the largest number of seats in Parliament. Mr Khan founded his party around two decades ago; his success is proof that his message to the electorate that the country’s cancerous corruption had eaten into the vitals of society and fatally weakened the Pakistani state to the point of economic and social collapse. His message clearly struck a chord across the nation, grown cynical and despondent with inflated promises, stark incompetence and crumbling institutions.
Imran Khan has broken the mould. The old ways, the grand boasts has reduced Pakistani to ignoble penury. Funding and exporting jihadis across the border into India and Afghanistan has been backfiring on all cylinders as the bomb blasts across the country shows only too well. Nawaz Sharif, now incarcerated in jail with a ten year sentence by the courts for massive corruption during his tenure as prime minister.
In his address to the nation, Imran Khan was brutally robust in pointing to the country’s ills and its causes. He has sworn that he and his party will make a difference by tackling the country’s endemic corruption at its roots, that his party would package a new deal for the country’s long defrauded masses, The proof of the pudding will be in the eating.
Too much has been made of Mr Khan’s alleged links with Pakistan’s all powerful military. Even if true, it doesn’t necessarily follow that he is the military’s pawn doing its bidding as ordered. The military well understands that it may be the guarantor of the new regime’s reforms that can put Pakistan back on its feet with some hope for the future. The relationship between the military and the future civilian regime is thus far from one-sided.
The next points to consider are Imran Khan’s credentials. He was in his sporting pomp Pakistan’s charismatic cricket captain, a great player himself; with the ball fast and deadly with pace and swing bracketed with the elect in the game’s history, with the bat he was solid and dependable, with a safe pair of hands on the field. As captain, Imran Khan has no peer in the annals of Pakistani cricket. He instilled in his players a sense of self-belief, inspiring them to face triumph and disaster just the same. Beginning with two defeats in the World Cup of 1992, Pakistan, under his leadership, won the coveted trophy. Imran’s perception of talent was truly exceptional. A cursory look at debutants, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, convinced him of their extraordinary class. Without further ado they were drafted into his Test team and attained glory as a fast bowling pair on par with the best in cricket history. When Imran detected that his cousin, Majid Khan, a former Pakistan captain and star batsman in his time, was over the hill, he had no hesitation dropping him. That took some courage and character. When Imran Khan retired, Pakistan cricket fell from grace.
Cast an eye at the Indian crick establishment’s embrace of mediocrity, with declining ‘oldies’ decide the most propitious moment to leave cetre-stage, while budding talent waits in the wings.
Leading a country is leagues more onerous than captaining a cricket team. But cricket is often a test of character. The game being a form of social activity brings out the best in the best. The Pakistani people have instinctively opted for a man who once brought them glory, hoping desperately that he can do so again.
BRICS confident going forward
The BRICS Summit in Johannesburg of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa ended in a confident declaration extolling freer trade, reducing protectionism, furthering closer trade ties with partners, condemning terrorism (specifics mentioned in the communiqué of the previous summit required no repetition).
BRICS leaders referring to the BRICS Bank with its capital of $100 billion reminded countries saddled by burgeoning debt that the Bank was ready to service their debts and offer loans on easier conditions than those available at international lending agencies such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other such bodies.
The combined population of BRICS account for half or more than the global total. China has the second-largest global economy after the United States, India has the sixth-largest and is poised to overtake Britain at the end of the current financial year ending March 31, 2019, and occupy fifth position. India is already the world’s fastest growing large economy; Brazil is the most populous country and biggest economy in South America,; and South Africa is Africa’s most industrialized state. Finally, the Russian Federation happens to be the world’s largest country by some distance, and is a military superpower alongside the United States. Russia is also the most richly endowed country on earth in natural resources including oil and natural gas.
The western media never lacks time or space covering G7, G20, and other such meets, but rarely devotes a line or a minute to BRICS. The supercilious mindset carries its special coda. No matter, this in no way alters the ground realities. The emergent economies are here to stay and grow and public recognition in the west is destined to follow in the fullness of time.
That said, BRICS Summits are accompanied by separate bilateral meetings between the Russian, Indian Chinese leaderships. Prime Minister Modi tweeted: ‘Wide-ranging and productive talks with President Putin. India’s friendship with Russia is deep-rooted and our countries will continue working together in multiple sectors.’ Firm, clear and brooking no denial.
The PM’s talks with China’s President Xi produced the accustomed platitudes of good intent from both sides. Chinese obfuscations puts one in instant recall of a remark by Lord Crewe, Secretary of State for India prior to the First World War, who complained that the gruelling experience of negotiating with Chinese ministers might consign him to a lunatic asylum. President Xi, all smiles and assurances of good intent was made aware of rising Indian concerns at the huge trade deficit in China’s favour. India sought greater access to the Chinese market, while cheap Chinese goods were flooding the Indian market. The trust deficit is self-evident. The purpose on both sides is to prevent it getting out of hand, undermining the fragile peace, inviting chaos.
India’s crony capitalism’
A curious article by James Crabtree in ‘One World,’ and now a book, Billionaire Raj’ has found its way into the Indian print media. It irks the author that should today have 119 dollar billionaires, one whom – Vijay Mallya, no less - appears to fixate him, since he spends valuable time in his company for an extensive interview with this opulent refugee from Indian justice. Mallya, no doubt, is a crony capitalist as is the absconding Nirav Modi, ergo, the Indian economy is crony capitalism – simplistic assessment, one would have thought. Does the Tata Group faal into this category? Does Mahindra & Mahindra or Larsen & Toubro? Crabtree draws a comparison with America’s gilded age in the last quarter of the 19th century. Crony capitalism is parasitic, and hence the vision and entrepreneurial energy of the authentic system is missing.
Curiously, Crabtree’s piece in India commences with a blazing broadside at Russia, which he avers, is under crony capitalist oligarchic rule - a devious subtext, surely, targeting the India-Russia relationship.
Damning India with faint praise, Crabtree opines that the Indian situation was not as bad as the Russian, that life for India’s poor had improved, but not as much as it had in the countries of East Asia. e.g. South Korea and Taiwan. All credit to them, although the latter’s have a miniscule demographic base compared to that of India. Capitalism comes with inequality, just as sin does with Christianity. The Boston Consulting Group’s Global Wealth Report 2018 is a countertual narrative that says Indians with personal wealth of $1 billion account for 16 per cent of its population. The report estimates that personal wealth in India grew at 12 per cent from 2017 to 2018, compared with 15 per cent in the previous period and much faster than the estimated personal 7 per cent wealth for the entire world.
Further, the report declares that most growth going forward will be in equities and investment funds. While this category consisted 17 per cent of personal wealth in 2012, it increased to 22 per cent in 2017, and is expected to reach 32 per cent by 2022.
