Musharraf: The Real Dr. Green Thumb

I have to admit, just reading what Musharraf said makes me want to throw on an army uniform and say, "sir, yes sir!" I've never seen one of his speeches and it probably wouldn't help since I don't speak his language(s), but I'm told he's even more charismatic in the delivery of his speeches. So when Musharraf says something like this with regards to a peaceful transition of power - you want to believe him:

"You think someone who has spent his entire adult life defending Pakistan and the past eight years trying to put democracy back on track wants to see the government fail and the country return to political anarchy? No. I'm committed to making this work. I had planted the sapling of democracy and I will not let it be affected at any cost."

I'd love to believe that Musharraf has been trying to promote democracy by sacking the judiciary an dismissing parliament. I'd love to believe that imprisoning political opponents was a necessary growing pain and that he really was watering the seed of democracy all along. Unfortunately, my damn common sense keeps getting in the way. Musharraf would say that I "can't see through the uniform," but when I hear stories about how Condi Rice has repeatedly had to restrain him from delaying elections I find myself being justifiably skeptical of the President.

It's obvious that Musharraf has an ulterior motive for claiming to promote democracy. Maybe he wants to hold on to some of the power he's about to lose. I think it's more likely though that it's a front for the non-transparent power he's exercising in the background. My professors have often times called me a cynic for never believing that a military ruler might just want to step down peacefully for once. I hope they're being sarcastic when they say that, but I suppose every political scientist wants to believe that humans aren't always power hungry.

At any rate, Musharraf got one thing right in his speech yesterday. He painted a grim picture when he asked, "Can you imagine what the effect would be on the business community, both foreign and domestic, or in the capitals of nations allied with us in the war on terror if the first thing they saw after this election was a political war between the presidency and the government? I think it would be catastrophic." Indeed, it would be. As I've been saying all along - the last thing parliament should be thinking about is a war with Musharraf because it will ultimately play into his, or at least the army's, hands. Crucifying Musharraf will only serve to mend broken egos, but it will not solve the plight of the poor and middle class people in Pakistan. Here enters the next military dictator - on his white stallion throwing out bread and money to the beggars on the street with a sword hidden at his side and the prime minister's imminent death at hand.