MUCH is happening in the world around us but at home, there is little to report or talk about. The messy Pakistani politics that doesn’t even believe in a day of rest is rather dull these days, forcing many of us in anchor-land to discuss foreign policy and the Middle East. It ain’t really out of choice and let no one tell you otherwise.
However, it’s not just the lot on television but also those in politics who seem to have run out of choices. If one had to describe politico-land in Pakistan these days; there are a bunch of headless chickens running around and clucking non-stop. None has a clue as to what to do and this is as true of those in power as it is of those in opposition. The only aim is to survive.
Consider the PTI leadership, which is caught between the establishment and its supporters. The second tier is mostly doing the bidding of one while pretending to care about the latter (and they are fearful of both). And while it’s hard to tell what the establishment wants, the view of the workers and supporters was evident from the recent lacklustre jalsa in Peshawar.
Perhaps this is why the KP chief minister’s speech, too, lacked the bombast of his earlier speeches — he knows no one will buy his Gabbar Singh act. The booing and jeering during his speech (and those of others), along with his being greeted by workers waving shoes at him had Ali Amin Gandapur run to Adiala on Monday morning, in the hope of a meeting — a meeting that he and those around him had been at pains to explain wasn’t being allowed.
No one doubts anymore that his ‘chief ministry’ is now less dependent on the PTI and more on the real power bosses. Indeed, if he is in power, it is not because of the man in Adiala. And that is because, the chief minister appears confident that Imran Khan is going to remain a resident of Adiala for some time.
It’s not just the lot on television but also those in politics who seem to have run out of choices.
However, in light of the mood in the province regarding the party leadership’s behaviour and the issue of militancy, this tightrope walk is going to become more and more difficult. Everyone is holding their breath to see how long it lasts. In the meantime, the PTI wallahs in the KP government and in parliament in Islamabad are going to run around in circles, achieving little other than exhausting themselves.
But it has to be said that the PTI’s routine shenanigans could not top what the Noonies got up to in New York. A meeting with President Donald Trump at the UN and a tête-à-tête at the Oval Office was too good an opportunity not to mess up and this is exactly what the PML-N managed to do. The boomers took a molehill on social media and turned it into a mountain on the mainstream.
The presence of Shama Junejo, a British-Pakistani woman who was part of the Pakistani delegation, caused a social media skirmish, among a dime-a-dozen other fights, till the defence minister decided to tweet that he didn’t know her or who made her sit behind him during a speech — as if ministers are usually aware of who is sitting or standing behind them at most public events.
His tweet disturbed the slumber of the Foreign Office, run by the deputy prime minister himself, which also decided to distance itself from Junejo’s presence. And voila! the mainstream media had a story to report and discuss in the midst of all else that can’t be mentioned. Junejo continues to remain confident that she was there because of the prime minister, and no one — be it ministers or the FO — has denied this or asked him about the issue. There really is no mystery here but let’s all pretend there is one because it does draw attention away from other issues, such as, how can there be a solution for Gaza without addressing the West Bank or who decided Pakistani government officials are cut out for interviews.
But uncomfortable questions are a no-no, so let’s stick to who let a woman into the UN General Assembly. Asking obvious questions and pretending there is no answer is how we roll these days.
This wasn’t the only (non) political news of the week. The PPP-PML-N public spat was another. Thankfully, Maryam Nawaz and Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari stepped in, otherwise the media would have been forced to spend hours on the statements of Sharjeel Memon and Azma Bokhari, two people whose press conferences are as hard to watch as a Netflix rom-com. But then, the heirs apparent came to our rescue and we had a pretend fight on our hands.
How serious was the back and forth, it was asked, while we wrung our hands. As if there was not just one answer. The ending is as obvious as the one in a Pakistani drama with an evil mother-in-law and an innocent daughter-in-law.
The PPP and N spat is no different. This arrangement drawn up by the grown-ups which allows everyone to rule, reign and make merry is not going to fall apart on disagreements on the handling of the floods or because N is not taking the PPP on board in Punjab. The handful of PPP Punjab will continue to huff and puff and their seniors in Sindh will pretend to agree.
While walking out is not an option, because our politicos believe that the people watching and voting are stupid, there will be verbal sparring as if there are some principles involved. For the PPP, it’s the Devdas-like concern for the people, while for the PML-N it’s this belief that Maryam Nawaz is doing so well that the PPP is worried about N’s growing popularity in Punjab. Delulu is their solulu. On the television screens, at least.
The writer is a journalist.
Published in Dawn, September 30th, 2025
