Mashallah. I could not have said it better myself. In fact I have been saying the same things as this writer for a long time now. ![]()
http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/nov-2007/20/columns2.php
The undefeatable general
MASOOD AHMAD
The president of Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf, has exhibited unparalleled characteristics of success and indefeatibility in all endeavours in his military career as well as in the recent interactions with the civilian society and the civil bureaucracy. His approach has always been unique and ideal in solving difficult problems . The attitude has been forthright and candid with the result that all actions have always met with success. While in the army, in actual field service. He was known to keep his cool in all circumstances as well as being mindful of the long-term effects of the contemplated action. He has carried the same concepts with him when he was forced by the circumstances to take over the reigns of the country in 1999. We have seen that on occasions when most of the other persons would panic and falter in making decisions, he has been making quick and correct decisions in the best interest of the nation.
In Pakistan, during the earlier years, the common man was neglected and downtrodden but during the last 7-8 years the situation has rapidly changed in favour of the common man. Free press and multiple avenues available to give vent to his feelings have led to giving tremendous confidence to the common man in getting his problems addressed in a much more decent and appropriate manner. The open forum, provided by the local government has not only given him a share in governance but has given him easy access to the elected representatives and also the power of accountability over those whom he has chosen to provide better governance .The accessibility of the public representatives in the different form, be it at the Tehsil or District level elected bodies or the Provincial and National Assemblies, has further facilitated the job of the common man who can now easily have a dialogue with his elected representative .
The initial objectives which were set by the president for his government can be enumerated as below and with the help of these we will be able to analyse the achievements better. **The government under the president has successfully accomplished: **Revival of the economy, freedom of expression, improved defence, devolution of power, financial discipline, improved communications, social uplift-better standard of living and increased per-capita income, realistic foreign policy, true public representation and improved law and order situation (even under the extreme constraints prevailing today due to the international and internal situation) it may not have been possible for any other weaker government to address the problem in such a forthright manner.
The conditions that had been prevailing in the country in the early 90’s and immediately after the taking over by the present government, further accentuated the accomplishment of tasks enumerated above in the preceding paragraphs and it can be seen that it is no mean achievement. The factors which have caused all this to come about are: realistic appraisal of the situation prevailing at that time, identification of the drawbacks and difficulties, sound planning to remove the errors and snags, defining a clear and precise course of action, successful execution of these plans and effective feedback mechanism to monitor progress and make corrections where necessary. This was only possible due to a dedicated and committed approach along with continuity in implementation as well as suitability of the implementation mechanism and team.
At this juncture, it is very important that we have faith in our government and support its efforts to consolidate national unity and return to the path of progress and prosperity soonest. What we can do to really benefit the nation is to ‘enable the election commission to hold free and fair elections, as per the original schedule’, and on our own part ‘go to cast our vote plainly and truthfully for those people whom we sincerely think are patriotic and sincere as well as committed to the cause of improving the lot of our common man’. This can be done only if we make a fair comparative assessment of the actual performance of the previous governments and the present governments .If we are impartial and unbiased in our analysis, we will surely want to vote for President Musharraf’s team who has demonstrated their performance in doing a fine job in all spheres of the government. In this manner we will further reconfirm our faith in the president and his future agenda to complete the tasks that he had wisely set for himself in the initial period.
We need to frustrate the designs of these unscrupulous elements and put our future in the hands of those persons whom we have tried and tested by way of their performance and about whom there is no doubt that they are sincere to the national cause and integrity of our beloved country. These eminent persons, with international standing obviously lend stature and credibility to the nation and confidently lead them with dignity and poise in a respectable manner amongst the nations of the world community. Let us give the credit where it is due and let us side with the successful people to achieve success in the future. We must recognise the fact that aligning ourselves with those who are undefeatable makes us also invincible and lets us achieve success in all spheres of life. “So therefore Let us ourselves vote for these persons of proven credentials and let us also convince our friends and companions to also vote for them for this is the call of the time and the only reasonable action expected from the patriotic, peace loving and progressive people of Pakistan to save the country from chaos and confusion.” This attitude will let us retain our credibility in the world as a mature and firm nation that is determined to continue its march forward towards progress and prosperity.