The misfortune of Pakistan is that when it first elects leaders they are mostly well intended who wish to do something for the country but in return demand loyalty and acknowledgement from the people. When the time of trial comes upon them the Pakistani people blatantly abandon them. So next time when such leaders manage to stage a comeback and grab power, they are full of vengeance against the people AKA ‘Democracy is the best revenge’ phenomenon.

The case of Benazir revenging through democracy is a good example. Her father talked about the people (real intentions God knows) but at least he talked about the poor and the masses. When he was deposed and later sent to the gallows not a voice of protest was raised from any where. However when his daughter used his name and came into power through democratic elections, she raised the slogan of ‘Democracy is the best revenge’ and true to her slogan she took revenge from the people of Pakistan for not protesting her father’s execution. Zardari carried the mission forward  and led Pakistan to a state where a PPP minister on TV declared “We have a right over corruption”.

In the case of Nawaz Sharif also the story goes quite the same way. When he first became prime minister he was full of patriotic intentions/expressions and wanted the country to become economically stable. When he was deposed and bundled out of the country, not a voice of protest was raised in his favour. In between he attempted to land back in Pakistan but was deported from the airport by the millitary without a whimper from the people, even his own party men. So when he managed to row back into power through ‘democracy’ he made sure that he settles his score with the people, and thus started concentrating on amassing wealth for himself and his family, which he concluded was the only weapon to win over the Pakistani people.

Musharraf who considered himself a hero of Pakistan and thought he had done favors to the country was dealt with in the same Pakistani coin when he ‘triumphantly’ landed at Karachi the home of his favourite party the MQM. So now if he ever came to power he would naturally punish the people in his own way for their unfaithfulness.

Actually it is the character weakness of the people of Pakistan who make idols out of fragile persons when destiny flings them into power and dump these ‘great leaders’ into the rubbish bin when they become weak. We must conduct a grand study on this aspect and suggest measures which can strengthen the character fabric of the Pakistani people at large, otherwise we will see this phenomenon being repeated again and again. — CN Editorial, 20 Feb 2017.