In the aftermath of the Panama Papers, there has been renewed series of protests against the financial corruption of political leaders and heads of state who have misused their power and position to accumulate wealth earned by dubious means and stashed away in offshore tax havens. In Pakistan, Tehrik-e-Insaf chairman Imran Khan has been the strongest critic of the alleged financial corruption of the family of the prime minister, who have been found to own offshore companies.
But these are not the only stories of corruption that have surfaced in the recent days. The other, equally shocking, stories are coming out of Pakistani Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) and its headquarters in Bani Gala. They are not being talked about by the country’s top politicians, but by the diehard and loyal grassroots workers of PTI, who have spent years serving the party and its chairman physically and financially.
Key office bearers of PTI have made statements about rampant misappropriation, embezzlement, bribery and corruption going on inside the party. The first among those who hinted at corruption inside the party was Justice Wajihuddin, the head of their election tribunal. But that was only half the story.
"Imran Khan will not get a single vote from my area ever again"
In the last few days, important members of PTI and very close companions of Imran Khan have come out and spoken against corruption in the party. One of them is Jan Khan, a Pakistani businessman from Geneva and the elected president of PTI Switzerland. He had met Imran Khan in 2003, and decided to join him right away, devoting himself to the party.
“I was mad with passion to serve the PTI and my country, and sacrificed twelve years of my life for the party,” Jan Khan said. “I spent millions of rupees, left my business in Paris and Geneva, brought my two baby daughters to live in a small village Nakband in Kohat for the election campaign of Khan, and had to go through unimaginable hardships. My opponents even got me arrested and thrown in jail in the horrible heat of the summer in Kohat.” He went through all that to win his leader the election. Imran Khan had personally asked him to come to Pakistan and run the 2013 election campaign in Kohat. But right after his party won the polls, when he went to Islamabad to see Imran Khan, he was barely acknowledged.
“A few months later, I tried to visit Bani Gala along with about fifty people who had come from all over my area to meet Imran Khan,” Jan Khan continued. “I was not allowed to enter. There was a barrier that I was not allowed to cross. I called Naeemul Haq dozens of times, but there was no response,” he said while referring to a party leader and close aide of Khan. Haq could not be contacted for comment on the allegation. “When he finally responded,” Jan Khan said, “he threatened to send the police to get me thrashed and thrown in jail.” An emotional Jan Khan said he was so humiliated that he wanted to drop dead right there.
He was heartbroken and decided to take his family back to Geneva. But that was not the saddest part of the story. Not too long after that, the man who had got him thrown in jail joined the PTI. Jan rushed back to Pakistan, where he said he begged Imran Khan not to accept the man’s membership. But the party leader paid no heed to his concerns. “I reminded Imran Khan who I was and how much I had served him, but he did not listen. My opponent had paid a huge sum of money to join the party, and he told me it could not be refused. It was like a slap on my face.” The story continues.
Soon after that, his opponent managed to get the supply of drinking water to his village and the union council disconnected. It has not been restored in two years. “I am so embarrassed that I cannot go back to my village,” Jan Khan said. “I contacted Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Pervaiz Khattak for the restoration of our water supply and left innumerable messages for Imran Khan, including emails. There was no response.”
Now, Jan Khan is joining Mustafa Kamal’s newly formed party to make a statement. He is only sure about one thing. “Imran Khan will not get even a single vote from my area ever again.”
This is not the only story of its kind. Aftab Ahmed, a member of PTI from Bresica, Italy, spent a large sum from his personal wealth on the party. He organized a number of large events for the party in Italy and elsewhere, including its European conventions. But now, he is dejected. “Imran Khan has a circle of cronies now who are holding him hostage,” Aftab Ahmed says. “His close aides are openly accepting bribes through their front-men. They have even fixed the rates. They demand liquor, cash, smartphones and laptops for a few minutes of meetings with Imran Khan in Bani Gala. And Imran Khan is behaving like a royal prince who cannot be accessed.”
When Aftab Ahmed came to Pakistan a month ago, after the death of his father, he tried his best to meet Imran Khan, but failed. He then called Naeemul Haq, and other close aides of the leader, but to no avail. He then met Chaudhry Sarwar and sought his help. The former governor tried to help him, but could not succeed. He left messages for his leader, but there was no response. So he decided to just visit Bani Gala. He was stopped at the barrier outside the premises, where he says he was humiliated and emotionally hurt. He waited for long, but had to return without meeting Imran Khan. “I will never forget their attitude,” he said. “And I will wait for the day Imran Khan come to Europe.”
For Aftab Ahmed, the dream of a “New Pakistan” has long turned to dust. “There is rampant corruption in the party. Imran Khan is surrounded by people who are the most notorious for corruption themselves. He has gathered criminal elements in the party, in the name of ‘electables’, and they have nothing to do with any ideology.”
Party insiders say there are now fixed rates for a selfie with Imran Khan, or a photograph on a sofa in Bani Gala, and even a “special package” for funerals. All the groups visiting Bani Gala are asked for donations, and there is no transparency in this process. These allegations are hard to verify independently, but many such stories have come to the fore. It is not clear if Imran Khan knows about them, but it is certain that it is his responsibility to find out if there is any truth in them. Until then, it seems that this snowball effect will continue, bringing the entire narrative of ‘change’ into question.