(mods: I know this board isn’t for political debates but since someone else started it, I have to end it.)
Realdeal: Imran had the idea for constructing a cancer hospital ever since his mom died in 1985, surely you are not implying that he conceived the hospital idea just to get in to politics considering that he launched his party more than a decade later!!
During his hospital campaign many people asked him to come in to politics, Imran also had to deal with our corrupt system during his drive (many faulty cases were filed against him in the court), and there was also a bomb blast at his hospital during Benazir’s rule and the culprit wasn’t caught, this forced him in to doing something about this country of ours!!
My friend, when a person has the popularity and the capability to help his nation then why shouldn’t he. I am sure cricket fans are aware that he always stood up for principles and was a great leader worthy of respect, if you read his articles they always show an insightful man, and as for the hospital, it is still functioning and year after year he and his family put so much effort in to raising money through charities, its not that easy to run such a sophisticated hospital almost free of cost for the poor people, if he was only doing it for political gains then you would see a decline in the hospital’s services.
Ok, I will try a creative way to offer just a bit of proof here about Imran’s actual motives:
First, lets establish whether Jemima’s statements are authentic, to do this I quote from an article:
*Goodwill is something Jemima’s quite adept at generating. Consider the Multani pottery maker in Islamabad’s Kohsar Market. A few encounters with Jemima, who is a major client for his immaculately designed and hand-crafted crockery, and this enterprising potter is a fan for life.
“It doesn’t matter what she was before,” he tells me, referring to her erstwhile Jewishness. “Woh ab hamari hain (she is ours now),” he says, counting her among Pakistanis. And he can’t stop gushing. “I found her to be such a genuine and nice person,” he continues. “And she is going to be someone big in this country one day,” he says, suddenly becoming prophetic.*
Ok, now that we know she is a genuine person, lets read what she has to say about Imran’s political ambitions:
*PERSONALLY, Jemima is apprehensive about politics. Quoting General Musharraf’s wife’s example, I comment that although she travels with her husband almost everywhere, she is nonetheless unassertive and does not involve herself in politics.
“I don’t blame her,” quips Jemima. "I’m not actively involved either. My children are too young for me to be actively involved. Politics is… I think it’s not the easiest path to take," she says finally, articulating her apprehensions. She supports her husband’s political ambitions only because she believes he’s not in it for the power. “You (should) do it if you feel it’s a duty, like Imran. He really feels it’s his personal duty to be involved in politics, but he’s certainly not ambitious for power at all and there are, from his point of view, far more disadvantages than advantages of a political life,” she reveals.
Imran Khan, says his wife, is a person who loves nature and family life, and is not particularly gregarious or sociable. **“I think he really sees politics as a sort of extension of his social work,” Jemima explains. Because he could only take his social work to a certain point beyond which he felt powerless, Imran chose politics to effect social change.
“In a way it’s a positive thing that he’s gone into it with those kind of intentions, because it means that if he is not successful, it won’t bother him. He’ll see it as his destiny.** So let’s see,” she says with a laugh that lightens the seriousness of the discourse. And though she insists she’s not actively involved, she can’t help but be interested. “I think it’s a very interesting time to live in Pakistan. You can’t but be involved in a peripheral sense, because everyone’s involved. The drivers, the cook, everybody has an opinion,” enthuses Jemima.*
http://www.gupistan.com/gallery/1/Imran_Khan_Hero.jpg
“He who lives upon hope only will die fasting.”
[This message has been edited by sallu123 (edited June 21, 2002).]