Kalabagh Dam

Every other day Mr. Musharraf bombasts that the controversial Kalabagh dam (KBD) will be built “at every cost”. Sometimes, while assuring to take Sindh and NWFP along, he has imprudently blustered – almost simultaneously - consensus or no consensus, this project will be undertaken.

Vowing to do something at every cost implies a willingness to undertake an endeavour regardless of the consequences. This type of assertion is indicative of either huge emotional value of the issue at hand or acute lack of balanced analytical prowess.

Such zeal is quite often devoid of rationality. Like, blind love or neurotic hatred, where cost-benefit logic ceases to play a role. Sensitive national affairs and intricate political issues, however, never belong to this category.

So, what does Mr. Musharraf mean by “at every cost”? Is it so, KBD will be built even if it is tantamount to further dismemberment of Pakistan? Even if it definitely means ripping apart federating units, strengthening of centrifugal forces and a death kiss to already brittle inter-provincial harmony?

It is hard to find reasonable grounds to oppose a storage mechanism for overflowing water during floods to be used later on when there is shortage of water. Still, Pakistanis in three provinces are hell bent against the construction of KBD. Why? According to Mr. Musharraf he has yet to come across any solid argument against KBD and people “just” keep on talking about “lack of trust”.

I feel sorry for our saviour general. The poor guy is unable to understand the vitality of “trust” in national affairs and politics. Apparently, to some, trust is a commodity that carries no importance or value at all. It is not naïve rather idiotic on the part of Mr. Musharraf to expect Pakistanis trust their rulers after having betrayed them infinite number of times.

In fact, the lack of trust has gone to the level that whenever our rulers passionately advocate for something, we Pakistanis assume, by default, that either some unknown vicious designs or personal benefits of the ruling elite explain the unusual fervour.

According to the prevalent national psyche, people are simply unwilling to believe that advancing national interests can ever be a driving force, for our leaders, irrespective of their attire, whatever the arguments may be. Well, what else should we do after having gone through a number of referendums, self-perpetuating tricks and stints of pure democracy?

One of the very few, that’s too badly fractured rationale, for Mr. Musharraf squatting at the Presidency is the extra-constitutional resolutions passed by three out of four provincial assemblies reposing “confidence” in him as the head of state. Now when three out of four provincial assemblies have categorically rejected KBD, Mr Musharraf doesn’t give even a nominal care to their rejection. Salute to sustainable, true and genuine democracy!!

Exactly this “democratic” mindset was the foremost reason which led to disintegration of the country before. Do we afford the same arbitrariness again? Wrong or right, we have got to heed the dissenting opinion of three out of four provinces of Pakistan. Failing to do that does not augur well for the federation and will create further complexities in a bitter political environment, underlined with inter-provincial discord, distrust and misgivings.