I have been doing some reading, taking the full advantage of the semester off. Pakistan’s history & its political leaders is one of the hot topics. Following is a list of leaders that I found influential throughout history & how I view them . I didn’t bother with those who were too old (from the 50s) or those that didn’t contribute much. Please feel free to disagree & post your own views on the ones listed bellow or add if to the list if you so chose. I hope that the views will stick to personal opinions & the thread won’t come to copy/paste stuff.
Ayub:
(+ve) - Was a true patriot! His reforms were felt on the grass roots - or to the common man. Industry, education, economy flourished in his time as well as stability.
(-ve) - Too much of a dictator - hardheaded. Had a superiority complex for the West Pakistan, or maybe it was just Army vs. Civilian. Too capitalistic in his approach that later was exploited against him. Some comment too modern for the country at the time. His advisors, military and public, as well as his family gave him more grief than the general public.
Bhutto:
(+ve) - Vibrant Political leader with ambition & vision. Well read, educated and charismatic speaker!
(-ve) - Too self-centered & paranoid for power to think of the country as a whole. His land slide victory made him cocky. Though socialist/welfare oriented in word & speech, didn’t do much for the common man & stayed feudalistic.
Zia:
(+ve) - Hard to say anything +ve! I guess his biggest accomplishment was to hold on to power for so long. Someone wrote about him that he acted with humility.
(-ve) - The same person wrote a few lines further that he was a hypocrite. Dictator to the roots & on top of that didn’t have any ambitions or goals other than to stay in power. Did more to please others than for himself. His key to success was ousting from power a corrupt regime which was perceived as Anti-USA, then gaining the strong hold nationally & internationally through the first Afghan war.
Mushraff: (Though still in the making)
(+ve) - Simple in his speech & at least his words/ideas get a nod of approval. Knows how to play his cards when it comes to India (so far)
(-ve) - Depends too much on his advisors, it almost seems like its the same king makers of Zia era or their legacy hanging around. “Made the right decisions for the wrong reasons”. Haven’t done much to improve the life of the majority of the citizens. Constitutional reforms are a replica of previous dictators. Some say economy is better under him, but they only note down the data from after September 11th.
