Pakistan’s caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar Kakar’s expensive and meaningless tour around half the globe has raised eyebrows, making people question the logic behind such an expenditure.
At the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session, Kakar delivered a speech that could have been given by the foreign minister. No worthwhile meeting was organised for the PM in the UK, where the highlight was an address at the House of Lords or two meaningless sideshows at the Oxford University. Kakar’s trip to Riyadh was for his personal fun. Why was a temporary officeholder allowed to use a private jet to Paris, New York, London and then Riyadh especially at a time when money is a problem in Pakistan and the State is going round with a begging bowl in hand?
This is certainly not a simple case of a man holding a high office misusing its power. Pakistan’s army is keenly watching over the economy and would not be excited about civilian financial wastage unless they see it as a long-term investment with expectation of favourable results. Some sources that I spoke with feel that he was allowed the luxury because the military leadership want him to play a longer-term role in the new state that they are designing at the moment.
He will be one of the many new faces, who will be used to engage the world and play a role domestically. The position of Chairman Senate that is about to be vacated is one of the several places that Kakar may be parked. He certainly looks more important for the military-run system that the former National Security Advisor (NSA), who has been parked in a private university and used mainly for track-2 negotiations with India.
It could possibly be that tired from their latest Imran Khan experiment, the generals want to invest in ‘technocratish’ politicians, those that are more bureaucratic than political. While Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari will be tolerated, the future investment may be in Anwar Kakar, Moeed Yusuf, Shahid Khakan Abbasi kind of men. The search now is for someone who is loyal to the establishment, articulate in English language, able to talk to an international audience, fairly groomed, and with no political bone in their body. The goal is to create a leadership that don’t let project Pakistan fail but without challenging the GHQ.
The interim prime minister’s interaction with the deep State likely dates back to 1996/1997, when I was introduced to him by a civil service colleague of mine posted in Quetta. Related to Kakar through a second marriage and very inclined towards money making and power, this officer had a role to play in facilitating Kakar’s handshake with certain institutional affiliates. He had also made it a habit to introduce Kakar to any noticeable visitor to Quetta, which may have been part of his training to engage with people, pick up ideas and terminologies that he could use later to impress people and pass himself off as intellectual.
According to sources, as Kakar proved useful—especially in turning around some key Baloch nationalists—he was awarded a Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PMLN) ticket to contest the 2008 elections that he could not win due to lack of support. General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who had then recently taken over as the army chief and promised non-interference in civilian affairs and elections, hampered Kakar’s success.
However, Kakar’s continued hot pursuit of State institutions, that meant a struggle to get noticed, paid off when he got enrolled in the National Security Workshop (NSW) at the National Defence University (NDU). In 2015, he was made spokesperson for the Balochistan government, later he was made a senator, and then the prime minister of Pakistan. Kakar possibly drew greater attention as a member of the Senate Standing committee on human rights and foreign affairs.
