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Pakistan’s hybrid regime buying time before its downfall

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As his failures pile up, PM Imran Khan has reorganized his government's propaganda arm

By IMAD ZAFAR APRIL 28, 2020

Imran-Khan-February.jpg


A pioneer in the field of public relations and propaganda, Edward Bernays, once said, “Propaganda is the executive arm of the invisible government.” Bernays was right, as in the modern world both democratic and authoritative regimes need propagandists not only to divert the attention of the masses toward non-issues but also to keep them hostage to the designated paradigm of what they should eat, what they should wear, and whom they should vote for.

This is the reason information ministries are given a key position, as they put a spin on events and proceedings according to the will of government, whether visible or invisible. On Monday, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan removed Firdous Ashiq Awan as his special assistant on information and brought in a senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senator, Shibli Faraz, as the new information minister.

Khan also appointed retired Lieutenant-General Asim Saleem Bajwa as his special assistant on information, sending a clear message that the military establishment is not ready to accept the failures of the hybrid regime it set up, which is not only destroying the economy but also weakening democracy and political discourse.

Bajwa, who also acts as chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority (CPECA), enjoys a good reputation within the military establishment, as during his stint as director general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), he successfully promoted the image of the then Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Raheel Sharif, and managed the media as the establishment expected.

So gradually the invisible government of the establishment is becoming visible, as the bad governance of the Khan-led PTI government and its inability to bring the opposition parties to the table for a cohesive national action plan for fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on country’s economy has left the establishment with virtually no option but to come to center stage and govern from the front.

The problem remains that a weak prime minister who is the product of a rigged political discourse has no authority to stop the establishment from undermining democracy, as he lacks legitimacy, just like the dictators of Pakistan’s past. This is the reason a few PTI cabinet ministers have started talking about changes in the 18th Amendment of the constitution, which guarantees autonomy to the provinces.

The 18th Amendment has always been disliked by the establishment, as not only does it deprive the military elite of direct intervention in the form of martial law but it also allocates state revenue to the provinces according to their population size, so the federal government is left with not much control or resources at its disposal.

In a time when the entire world is going through a recession due to the pandemic and countries are reducing their unproductive expenditures such as military and defense budgets, the establishment in Pakistan is doing the opposite.

fiasco over Kashmir, the defense budget itself is questionable. After all, Pakistan’s defense spending has always been India-centric and has always revolved around Kashmir.

Since Kashmir has in effect been annexed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and in the testing times of a global pandemic even India has announced a cut in its defense budget, it poses a question for the Pakistani establishment as to why not it should not also cut its budget, and reallocate the funding toward better health facilities and giving relief to the masses who are bearing the brunt of the lockdown in the form of unemployment and closure of their businesses.

So the man who projected Raheel Sharif as the messiah of the nation is back, with a more difficult job. Not only will he be required to spin the debate on whether or not to cut the defense budget, but he will also be required to present the inept and visionless Prime Minister Imran Khan as a hero and to project the image of the current COAS, General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

The new director general of ISPR, Major-General Babar Iftikhar, unlike his predecessor, is a professional who is focused on building his institution’s reputation instead of focusing on projecting an individual’s image. Asim Bajwa has good contacts in the media and with dissident journalists practically banned from the electronic media, it would not be difficult for a man like him to handle the media effectively.

Ayub Khan nor General Pervez Musharraf was able to save himself or their anointed parties despite the backing of their cronies who were appointed on every key position of the state.

So the end is in clear sight – it is just a matter of how long the masses will have to pay the price of the misadventures of the establishment and Khan-led PTI. Probably no political party will want to come to power during a global recession and pandemic, but even so the PTI regime will find it hard to survive, and some in the establishment may be already feeling the heat.

Perhaps this is the reason that as a last resort the establishment is trying to make adjustments to the 18th Amendment and trying to help out the current government by appointing one of its former media managers to attempt to polish the image of Imran Khan, who is now being criticized widely in the country for his rhetoric and not doing anything practical.

When the invisible forces were working on bringing Khan to power through rigged general elections, little did they knew that soon a time would come when they would be in the same boat as Khan and sharing his fate.

A respectable tactical retreat could have been an option but unfortunately, the establishment wasted time teaching the dissident political parties a lesson for challenging its hegemony. Now the more time passes, the more the process of retreat on the power chessboard will be bitter and embarrassing for the establishment and its civilian face, the PTI government.

Imad Zafar is a journalist and columnist/commentator for newspapers. He is associated with TV channels, radio, newspapers, news agencies, and political, policy and media related think-tanks.

https://asiatimes.com/2020/04/pakistans-hybrid-regime-buying-time-before-its-downfall/

Wow....More reason to end this 18th amendment...and IMPOSE governor rule in Sindh.

Propagandists in PPP and N-League are having NIGHTMARES due to appointment of Mr. Bajwa
 
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they should be given whole 5 year tenure otherwise they will become a martyr like the PeePeePee and Punjab Muslim League - Nawaz group
This Ramzaan I'm hoping and praying that pig Altaf dies a painful death. I request all Pakistanis specially Karachiites to do the same. When he will die it will be like Eid in Karachi, on that momentous day we will have a small percentage of people like you who would be having matam in their houses.
 
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The article is on point IMO.

Wow....More reason to end this 18th amendment...and IMPOSE governor rule in Sindh.

I have to ask, why you think ending 18th amendment is a good thing? It was there primarily to overturn the anti-democratic and dictatorial amendments made by Musharraf and Zia. Ideas with damaging legacies such as the President having the power to remove PMs and dissolve parliament.

Edit: the devolution that resulted from the 18th amendment is a very good thing, I don't think it went far enough.
 
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Edit: the devolution that resulted from the 18th amendment is a very good thing, I don't think it went far enough.

what did 18th amendment achieve, nothing but regionalism and increased ethnic confrontation, otoh musharraf did empower the local bodies which proved to be miraculous, 18th amendment should have been used to devolve local powers but the provinces kept their dictatorial control on them and kept appointing commissioners instead of giving power and funds to elected representative.

regards
 
. . .

For anything to FAIL, there must be a measure of what qualifies as PASS.

As far as Hybrid powered engines are concerned, that along with poor governance has not changed from any of the past enlightened governments.

The government will not be allowed to escape as going gets tough due to pandemic. This government enjoys friendly opposition as much as the previous ones.

Just a click-bait article.
 
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These raw paid journalists should not be taken seriously.
 
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In 2018 i said pakistan ia going to defualt as noone can really think we would pay off 20billion deficit ..
Well arabs did (qatar saudis and UAE) so we did stop that from happening ..but to get economy changed to develop country in 5 years.:pakistan:
Pakistanis wanting shortcuts
 
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As his failures pile up, PM Imran Khan has reorganized his government's propaganda arm

By IMAD ZAFAR APRIL 28, 2020

Imran-Khan-February.jpg


A pioneer in the field of public relations and propaganda, Edward Bernays, once said, “Propaganda is the executive arm of the invisible government.” Bernays was right, as in the modern world both democratic and authoritative regimes need propagandists not only to divert the attention of the masses toward non-issues but also to keep them hostage to the designated paradigm of what they should eat, what they should wear, and whom they should vote for.

This is the reason information ministries are given a key position, as they put a spin on events and proceedings according to the will of government, whether visible or invisible. On Monday, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan removed Firdous Ashiq Awan as his special assistant on information and brought in a senior Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) senator, Shibli Faraz, as the new information minister.

Khan also appointed retired Lieutenant-General Asim Saleem Bajwa as his special assistant on information, sending a clear message that the military establishment is not ready to accept the failures of the hybrid regime it set up, which is not only destroying the economy but also weakening democracy and political discourse.

Bajwa, who also acts as chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority (CPECA), enjoys a good reputation within the military establishment, as during his stint as director general of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), he successfully promoted the image of the then Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Raheel Sharif, and managed the media as the establishment expected.

So gradually the invisible government of the establishment is becoming visible, as the bad governance of the Khan-led PTI government and its inability to bring the opposition parties to the table for a cohesive national action plan for fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on country’s economy has left the establishment with virtually no option but to come to center stage and govern from the front.

The problem remains that a weak prime minister who is the product of a rigged political discourse has no authority to stop the establishment from undermining democracy, as he lacks legitimacy, just like the dictators of Pakistan’s past. This is the reason a few PTI cabinet ministers have started talking about changes in the 18th Amendment of the constitution, which guarantees autonomy to the provinces.

The 18th Amendment has always been disliked by the establishment, as not only does it deprive the military elite of direct intervention in the form of martial law but it also allocates state revenue to the provinces according to their population size, so the federal government is left with not much control or resources at its disposal.

In a time when the entire world is going through a recession due to the pandemic and countries are reducing their unproductive expenditures such as military and defense budgets, the establishment in Pakistan is doing the opposite.

fiasco over Kashmir, the defense budget itself is questionable. After all, Pakistan’s defense spending has always been India-centric and has always revolved around Kashmir.

Since Kashmir has in effect been annexed by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and in the testing times of a global pandemic even India has announced a cut in its defense budget, it poses a question for the Pakistani establishment as to why not it should not also cut its budget, and reallocate the funding toward better health facilities and giving relief to the masses who are bearing the brunt of the lockdown in the form of unemployment and closure of their businesses.

So the man who projected Raheel Sharif as the messiah of the nation is back, with a more difficult job. Not only will he be required to spin the debate on whether or not to cut the defense budget, but he will also be required to present the inept and visionless Prime Minister Imran Khan as a hero and to project the image of the current COAS, General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

The new director general of ISPR, Major-General Babar Iftikhar, unlike his predecessor, is a professional who is focused on building his institution’s reputation instead of focusing on projecting an individual’s image. Asim Bajwa has good contacts in the media and with dissident journalists practically banned from the electronic media, it would not be difficult for a man like him to handle the media effectively.

Ayub Khan nor General Pervez Musharraf was able to save himself or their anointed parties despite the backing of their cronies who were appointed on every key position of the state.

So the end is in clear sight – it is just a matter of how long the masses will have to pay the price of the misadventures of the establishment and Khan-led PTI. Probably no political party will want to come to power during a global recession and pandemic, but even so the PTI regime will find it hard to survive, and some in the establishment may be already feeling the heat.

Perhaps this is the reason that as a last resort the establishment is trying to make adjustments to the 18th Amendment and trying to help out the current government by appointing one of its former media managers to attempt to polish the image of Imran Khan, who is now being criticized widely in the country for his rhetoric and not doing anything practical.

When the invisible forces were working on bringing Khan to power through rigged general elections, little did they knew that soon a time would come when they would be in the same boat as Khan and sharing his fate.

A respectable tactical retreat could have been an option but unfortunately, the establishment wasted time teaching the dissident political parties a lesson for challenging its hegemony. Now the more time passes, the more the process of retreat on the power chessboard will be bitter and embarrassing for the establishment and its civilian face, the PTI government.

Imad Zafar is a journalist and columnist/commentator for newspapers. He is associated with TV channels, radio, newspapers, news agencies, and political, policy and media related think-tanks.

https://asiatimes.com/2020/04/pakistans-hybrid-regime-buying-time-before-its-downfall/

Wow....More reason to end this 18th amendment...and IMPOSE governor rule in Sindh.

Propagandists in PPP and N-League are having NIGHTMARES due to appointment of Mr. Bajwa
This is an Indian news paper.
Just recently launched. Basically have anti imran khan, Pro nawaz sherif stance.
Also anti establishment stance.
 
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what did 18th amendment achieve, nothing but regionalism and increased ethnic confrontation, otoh musharraf did empower the local bodies which proved to be miraculous, 18th amendment should have been used to devolve local powers but the provinces kept their dictatorial control on them and kept appointing commissioners instead of giving power and funds to elected representative.

regards

There are trade-offs and consequences involved in all forms of changes in governance structure. That is basically what the 18th amendment was designed to achieve. In a democracy, parliament is meant to be sovereign by definition.

To have a president able to dissolve parliament and sack the PM at a whim is by definition anti-democratic, dictatorial etc. That's the crux of the problem with both eighth and seventeenth amendments of the constitution, and the legal framework order of 2002, as well as articles therein that allow the executive to appoint service chiefs and governors, to overturn all of these was the primary purpose of the 18th amendment.

I could go on at further length describing other very necessary provisions that the 18th amendment is there to uphold, such as transparency and due-process in judicial appointments, and devolution of powers. On the subject of the latter, how many times have we seen members (rightfully) complain about underdevelopment of parts of Punjab in favour of others, or the neglect of Karachi, or other issues related to too much centralization of powers?

I'd suggest members actually read the the articles and amendments I've mentioned here before they rely on other sources to arrive at an anti-18th amendment conclusion.
 
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All the 18th amendment did was to allow regional parties like the PPP to create local fiefdoms where they then dispensed state funds not for state or local benefits but as an extension of their political rule

The 18th amendment is a travesty and needs to be destroyed

This article is the usual nonsense, if PPP wins hooray for democracy, if Pmln wins hooray for democracy
If anyone wins boohoo hoo it's the establishment

These parties have been worthless, corrupt, inept anyone still supporting Bhutto's and sharifs is a beghairat beyond redemption
 
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Posters living in other countries should not be allowed to post anti army and anti government posts.

Why? Are both above criticism? If something is worthy of criticism, what’s the problem?

If you disagree with the argument, address the argument itself instead of trying to invalidate it by other means.

All the 18th amendment did was to allow regional parties like the PPP to create local fiefdoms where they then dispensed state funds not for state or local benefits but as an extension of their political rule

The 18th amendment is a travesty and needs to be destroyed

This article is the usual nonsense, if PPP wins hooray for democracy, if Pmln wins hooray for democracy
If anyone wins boohoo hoo it's the establishment

These parties have been worthless, corrupt, inept anyone still supporting Bhutto's and sharifs is a beghairat beyond redemption
Have you read the 18th amendment and the relevant articles?

In 2018 i said pakistan ia going to defualt as noone can really think we would pay off 20billion deficit ..
Well arabs did (qatar saudis and UAE) so we did stop that from happening ..but to get economy changed to develop country in 5 years.:pakistan:
Pakistanis wanting shortcuts
I was warning since at least 2016 that the combination of a big trade deficit and dollar pegged at 105, with SBP burning reserves to maintain that level, that when this ends it’ll get ugly.

Pre-election it was obvious to folks like us that we were in the early stages of an economic crisis, with an IMF loan, PKR devaluation, increased taxes and inflation imminently arriving. What surprised me most is how IK and PTI during election campaigning barely seemed to notice it, or if they did they didn’t make it evident. I don’t blame them for the situation we are in but they could have handled it better.
 
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Avoid personal insults & abuse towards fellow members & Admin team
All the 18th amendment did was to allow regional parties like the PPP to create local fiefdoms where they then dispensed state funds not for state or local benefits but as an extension of their political rule

The 18th amendment is a travesty and needs to be destroyed

This article is the usual nonsense, if PPP wins hooray for democracy, if Pmln wins hooray for democracy
If anyone wins boohoo hoo it's the establishment

These parties have been worthless, corrupt, inept anyone still supporting Bhutto's and sharifs is a beghairat beyond redemption
Well said anyone still supporting these dynastic parties despite it being evident how they gang raped the country for four decades, is a beghairat of the highest order.

We have certain mods on here who fall under their category.
 
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