WITH just a single masterly knock, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Co-Chairman Asif Zardari has reoccupied his lost political space and lifted his party to a new high in the popular politics of Pakistan. Not only Zardari but all of his close aides and senior party leaders always candidly acknowledged, though out of sheer frustration, that the PPP's political fortunes were sagging apace because of its interminable ambivalence and unsure position on the continuation of Pervez Musharraf as president and the reinstatement of the deposed judges. “Our political standing suffered after the sacked judges were not restored within the appointed time frame of the Murree declaration. The downslide continued with the passage of time as the campaign for restoration of the dismissed justices kept picking up and Nawaz Sharif did not budge from his stand on this count,” a senior PPP leader said. “Zardari and all of us were conscious of the fact that we're going down politically and people's disenchantment with us was intensifying because of our dilly-dallying. We were always in a deep thought to check the downslide with some kind of political means.” While, on the one hand, Zardari has now bolstered his alliance with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Nawaz Sharif, on the other he has retrieved his and PPP's position on the political landscape of Pakistan and added new vigor, verve and dynamism to it. The party's rank and file is thrilled. “What massive political damage we suffered over the past four months we recouped it in just a few minutes with one powerful stroke with the declaration to impeach Musharraf and restore the terminated judges afterwards,” said another PPP leader. During these tricky four months, which proved extremely stormy and tortuous for the PPP, Zardari earned lethal condemnation and flak from a number of even those people who had described him as a statesman because of the way he conducted himself immediately after the assassination of his celebrated wife, Benazir Bhutto, last December. By going for Musharraf's impeachment to be followed by the return of the deposed justices as committed by Zardari, the PPP leader reverted back to the popular politics. Contrary to this, he was engaged after the Feb 18 elections in pragmatism and political expediency for his own compulsions that he feels no longer come in his way to be master of his own destiny. Previously, he was swimming against the public tide and was therefore bound to sink (politically) at the end of the day. Not only Zardari but his entire party was mindful of the fact that their refusal to make Musharraf history and to bring back the judges was earning unprecedented political dividends for Nawaz Sharif. They were aware that while the PPP was losing with every passing day, the PML-N was gaining hugely. They thought that they might become political nonentities if they didn't put an end to this. They were always tormented over the accusations that they were an unprincipled, cowardly and timid lot while Nawaz Sharif was a principled politician, who has the guts to stand and be counted in the prevailing situation. This perception, they knew, was gaining ground. After the announcement to impeach Musharraf and restore the judges, Zardari now also stands on the political stage as tall as Nawaz. There is now not even a minor difference between the positions of the two on the president's fate. Earlier on the popularity graph, the PPP was playing the second fiddle to the PML-N. It is not true any more. Apart from upgrading his political status and dismissing the well nigh universal perception that he was hostage to the colossal favors he secured courtesy of Musharraf's National Reconciliation Ordinance and his pledges and commitments that he made in exchange for his and Benazir Bhutto's return to Pakistan, Zardari's devastating hit has tremendously fortified the ruling coalition, which was hitting the rock bottom due to its gross divergence on the president's fate and the judges' issue. There is no doubt anywhere that the alliance will remain strong and intact till Musharraf's ouster that will occur any moment. It is anybody's guess what will happen to the coalition afterwards when their major target, Musharraf, would vanish (politically). When Zardari will be very happy over the political demise of Musharraf, Nawaz Sharif will rejoice more than him for obvious reasons. If the two are able to sustain their renewed bonhomie and camaraderie for a long time, say the constitutionally mandated five years of the government, there can be no danger and threat to the civilian setup from anywhere. But the system will come under severe strains when they will start jumping at each other's throat. The electorate of Pakistan decided by throwing up a split mandate on Feb 18 this year that these two political players should work in unison. __
