How tweet!
So, there it is. The Islamic Military Alliance to Fight Terrorism (IMAFT) is up and running, founded by HRH Mohammad bin Salman Al-Saud, of which General Raheel Sharif is Commander-in-Chief. Given that “terrorism” itself was “founded” in large measure by the policies of the same state, with some in the corresponding Pakistani state their eager facilitators, it’s ironical that both parties should now be in the fight against the same phenomenon together. So, with General Sharif off on his new mission, and at a hefty salary, might we suggest that he take his Tweet Maestro with him? After all, he was in the habit, not too long ago, of making all his policy announcements via the Maestro’s tweets.
Winter of discontent
It’s a winter of discontent across the board. The ruling party’s supporters are discontented because they now see their gains in the Local Bodies elections going up in smoke. Their hopes for that much-vaunted “grass roots empowerment” have been dashed on the rocks of a recent Ordinance, which has vested all power in the old Laat Saab, ie the District Commissioner, at the expense of local government. The Man of Steel may rue the day he promulgated this Ordinance – discontent amongst his rural voters in the Punjab is at an all-time high. Then there’s Bill, who was trying desperately to breathe life into the carcass of his family’s once-mighty Party. With the arrival of Pater from his foreign excursion, and the immediate imposition of unpopular edicts, Bill is full of discontent too. Aunty is back in the saddle, to Bill’s chagrin. The protest movement has been all but called off. And Bill will be chaperoned in Parliament by Pater, if the latter wins his seat.