It was 1992 world cup final that was being played in Melbourne cricket stadium.

I along with my
father and brother were glued to the television screens watching the start of the match. Ian Chappell
was hosting the coin toss and two captains, Graham Gooch from England and Imran Khan from
Pakistan were at the pitch. Imran won the toss and elected to bat.

The unique thing that has remained in my memory was seeing Imran Khan wearing a plain white T-
shirt with Tiger imprinted on its front. I remember not only because Tiger is my favourite animal but
also because Imran Khan said “Today we will fight like a cornered tiger because nothing is more
dangerous than a cornered Tiger” [Enter reference]. I could barely understand his reasoning at that
time as I was only six years old. However, thirty years on I can now start to make sense of his logic
and the impact Khan’s Tiger T-shirt had created on his opponents.

Pakistan had defeated tournament’s favourite team and won their first world cup under IK’s
captaincy. This was Khan’s last match which brought his 23 year cricketing career to an end. Many
commentators praised his fine leadership skills for this milestone achievement [Enter reference]
such as his sharp vision, wisdom, ability to lead from the front, coping well under pressure and
making efficient use of his scare resources. Leadership abilities of Imran Khan completely fit in the
defition of a perfect leader

After his retirement, Khan embarked on a series of new missions. He kicked off with
philanthropic activities when he built first cancer hospital in the country in 1995. In the
process of raising funds for the hospital Imran Khan was exposed to the harsh political
ground realities of the country when he was denied a fund-raising TV show on the national
channel. Imran Khan realised that the country was on a continuous decline as the corruption
was rampant and ruling elite was not held accountable. Khan describes this incident in his
own words as “I never wanted to enter politics till 1995 as I was busy collecting
donations for Shaukat Khanum Cancer Hospital for which I wanted to do a fundraising
show on PTV. But, I was disappointed when denied permission on political grounds. I
was then advised by my friends to form a political party if I wanted to challenge them.
Finally, we launched a small party of people with little experience in politics, who
wanted to change the system”. (Abbas, 2020).
Imran Khan’s popularity as a world class cricket captain helped him to successfully raise
funds for his cancer hospital “Shaukat Khanam” in Pakistan. This social project helped him
in creating a successful credibility and appealing personality in the eyes of the public as he
was viewed by majority as a philanthropist as well as a celebrity. Hence, it can be argued that
his successful humanitarian projects helped him to create a vision for his party that was more
aligned with social equality and justice movements that resonated with the views of the
general public.
In April 1996, Imran Khan launched his party called PTI that called for Independent
Judiciary and to reform governance system in the country that would provide justice to
common man. With these two as the core principles, Imran Khan build on his demand for
anti-corruption and transparency in the government. These demands echoed the feelings of
the masses and validated his charismatic leadership.
As Max Weber defined charisma as “a certain quality of an individual personality by virtue
of which he is set apart from ordinary men and treated as endowed with supernatural,
superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. These are … regarded as
of divine origin or as exemplary, and on the basis of them the individual concerned is treated
as a leader". Imran Khan’s political leadership style in terms of his inclusiveness, fight
against discrimination and call for equality and justice can be conceptualised under Weber’s
definition of the charisma.
As any successful political party needs a capable leadership to attract and retain public support.
However, Imran Khan, with a strong cricketing background, was already considered as a national
hero and was highly popular among the masses. Furthermore, his significant contribution in the
health sector which is often considered as a state responsibility increased his popularity amongst the
citizens even further.

Imran Khan’s PTI party contested its first ever elections in 1997 but was disappointed for not even
securing a single seat in National or Provincial assemblies. Later in 2002 elections, PTI managed to
secure only one and its first ever seat in National Assembly. Later, 2008 national elections were held
to transition power from military dictatorship to democracy. However, Imran Khan boycotted those
elections on the premises that elections were not being held as free and fair environment because
the Election Commission and Judiciary were under the heavy influence of Pakistan Military
establishment.

Meanwhile democracy had finally returned to the country after 2008 elections and PPP had emerged
as the victorious party. From 2008 to 2013, Pakistan was facing increasing new challenges such as
rise in terrorist activities, soaring corruption and increase in Blackwater activities throughout the
country.

Two prominent events that happened in 2011 were an inflection points in PTI’s popularity which
Khan successfully cashed on. First, a capture of Blackwater operative Raymond Davis in Lahore.
Secondly, Abbottabad operation by US special forces which killed Osama Bin Laden in his compound
hideout. These two events created a general feeling amongst the public that the ruling elite has
failed to protect the sovereignty of the country and has succumbed to US political pressure to hide
their corruption. These two events also resulted in immediate resignations of the then Foreign
minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (from PPP) and Javed Hashmi of PML-N. Both are well renowned
politicians with significant followings across the country. These two politicians criticized their
respective political leadership for not addressing the concerns of the public and resigned from their
political parties and government posts.

Imran Khan took this as an opportunity when he personally invited both political figures to his party
and offered them Vice Chairmanship of his PTI party. Their acceptance to Khan’s offer made
headlines in the country and several other junior politicians belonging to different political parties
also joined PTI for the same reasons to align their interest with those of public.

Imran Khan explains in his book that how he formed an image of new Pakistan that echoed
with the younger generation of his followers. “The young people of Pakistan were my main
strength, and I had seen over the years how youth across the wold had played a vital role in
popular campaigns… I wanted the students to be politicized, since dictators always try to
depoliticize people in order to maintain control”. Khan very carefully chose his words and
statements that targeted youth which resonated with their feelings.
Imran Khan also continued to focus on the culture of his PTI party and took steps that re-
invented it made it attractive particularly to the youth. In early 2012, chairman of PTI, Imran
Khan had announced to hold intra party elections. Candidates were required to participate in
the debates and win primary elections to be eligible for a party ticket to contest in General
Elections. PTI was the first political party in the 72 year history of Pakistan where a political
party conducted intra-party elections. PTI party with a slogan of change, reforms and justice,
holding party elections was paramount to gain public support. On the other hand, PTI also
created a system through which future leaders would emerge. This helped PTI in establishing
itself as a third force that was in direct competition to the status quo and dynastic political
parties. Conducting intra party elections also helped PTI in creating a consensus amongst the
party members which aided in formulating strategies that were closely associated with the
larger vision of the party i.e. anti-corruption and call for justice and equality.
Intra-party elections also transformed the political culture and had two significant positive
impacts on the political spectrum. Firstly, more number of women started to take part in main
stream politics. Secondly, member of public belonging to middle class also started to actively
participate in politics. Prominent examples include, Zartaj Gul and Ali Zaidi. Both had joined
the PTI party who then contested intra-party elections and after winning were awarded PTI
party tickets for General elections.
Imran Khan’s PTI has been successful in creating a culture of inclusivity and diversity and it
provides a platform which represents all segments of the society. This transformation of
culture has forced other leadership of other political parties to re-visit their decision making
models.
Despite an increase in Khan’s popularity and increased expectations of Imran Khan to sweep 2013
General elections by a significant margin, PTI once again failed to win the elections. It emerged as
the third largest party in General assembly and had manged to secure enough votes to form
government in one province, KPK, out of a total of four.

Many of the Khan’s political critics thought that he would not be able to make any significant
contributions to the Pakistani politics. Several others thought that he would drastically fail in KPK
and therefore bring a dead end to his own political career. However, Khan used this an opportunity
to once again demonstrate his leadership capabilities in KPK province.

Khan’s PTI party introduced several reforms in the province and formed new governance models
which were unlike any of his predecessors. Khan’s PTI party passed a police ordinance act which
gave authority to police force to resist any kind of political interference from the government
officials. This was a hailed as a huge step because in a country like Pakistan where police is often
used by ruling elites for their own personal agendas such as political victimisation. Secondly, the
police reforms improved the image of the police in eyes of the public where they started to see it
more as a service rather than a force. This transformation allowed police to fight terrorism in the
province more effectively and efficiently.

Imran Khan’s PTI government also introduced several reforms in the health sector. Introduction of
health insurance programme which allowed a single household to utilise up to Rs 540,000 worth of
health treatment in any of the private or public hospitals in the province. Moreover, several clinics in
the rural areas were setup to cater for the rural population and new governance model was
introduced where doctors in the public hospitals were made more accountable. These reforms
turned out to be extremely popular across the country. Furthermore, in surveys conducted by Herald
in 2018 showed that 26% of the respondents in KPK termed health services as above average
meanwhile only 7% termed them as above average in Sindh, a second largest province where PPP
has been in power for last 40 years.
Moreover, Khan introduced a first ever environmental policy in the history of the country. According
to United Nations reports, Pakistan is among the six countries in the world that would be most
adversely impacted due to Climate Changes. Imran Khan raised these concerns repeatedly on public
forums where he educated the public and vulnerability of Pakistan to such climate changes. His KPK
government introduced a project called “Billion Tree Tsunami” to counter climate changes adverse
effects. This project also successfully met Bonn Challenge where over 348,000 hectares of de-
forested land was restored and over $123MM was allocated for this project. Inger Anderson Director
General of IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) described it as “The Billion Tree
Tsunami initiative is a true conservation success story, one that further demonstrates Pakistan’s
leadership role in the international restoration effort and continued commitment to the Bonn
Challenge”. This is was termed as a great achievement at both the national and international levels.

Imran Khan’s PTI government in KPK province from 2013 to 2018, introduced over 150 ordinance
bills and enacted over 160 new laws related to people’s rights. His government also passed Freedom
of Information Act which allowed residents of KPK province to get government information and
thereby becoming the watch dogs. He also partnered with KPK High Court to create a system under
which justice was meant to be provided to marginalised population in a swift manner.

Additionally, Khan demonstrated his strict stance against corruption when he suspended 20
legislators belonging to his own PTI party on accusations of corruption charges. Further, Imran Khan
had introduced FATA (Federally Administrated Tribal Areas) reform bill to integrate Tribal areas into
the KPK province. Historically, Tribal areas of Pakistan had always been kept in isolation and were
denied any representation in the Provincial or National Assemblies. The integration of Tribal areas
with KPK province provided ignored tribes a voice to raise concerns and representation at both the
local and national levels.

Imran Khan continued to demonstrate his leadership capabilities through his performance in KPK
government. He also continued his criticism on two opposition parties (PPP and PML-N). He accused
leaders of both parties of being corrupt and tax evaders. He also continued to criticise their dynastic
party structures and their lack of concern for the welfare of general public.

Meanwhile in summers of 2016, Panama Papers were globally leaked out. These documents
identified Pakistan’s then Prime Minister Mr Nawaz Sharif and chairman of PML-N as an individual
who owns several properties across the world through shell companies. These properties were not
disclosed on any of his official documents which is a requirement under the Pakistani Law. Next
general elections were to be held in 2018.
The leaks of Panama Papers in mid-2016 provided an opportunity to Imran Khan to neutralise one of
his popular political opponent Nawaz Sharif. Khan was quick to react on the Panama leaks and
immediately filed a case in Supreme Court. After a yearlong trial Mr Nawaz Sharif was discharged
from Prime Minister Office indefinitely on the premises of being dishonest and untruthful.

Nawaz Sharif was highly popular in the province of Punjab, which constitutes over 60% of the
country’s population. As the Nawaz’s trial was progressing in 2016 to 2017 Imran Khan had adjusted
his strategy accordingly to immediately fill in the vacuum of leadership in Punjab province.

Imran Khan started of his election campaigns two years in advance i.e. in 2016 shortly after
Panama Papers were leaked out. Election rallies and protests were held in various cities
across the country with a primary focus on cities in Punjab. Thirdly, Khan re-invented media
wing of PTI party. As media sociologist Brian Mcnair explains that politicians should give
media origination what they want in terms of new or entertainment while exerting influence
over how that is presented to the audience. In line with this, 2018 General Elections were
less about what Imran Khan as Prime Minister may do but rather was more about how is
voters perceived him to be. As the politician representation can affect the voters’ perception
of the political candidates, PTI formulated a communication strategy that enhanced the
image of Imran Khan and portrayed him as an effective and charismatic leader by
connecting his social projects achievements with his political engagements.
Furthermore, PTI’s active social media team launched several initiatives such as sending
mobile phone text messages to its party members. These messages included latest updates of
PTI’s leadership as well as live streaming of political speeches and rallies. “From
developing the first website of any political party, to the first official twitter and Facebook
channels, to making the first Mobile (iPhone and Android) App of a political party, we have
been the leaders1.” This was a modernized political campaign that helped PTI to reach out to
a locals and project positive and likeable image of Imran Khan that set him apart from his
rival politicians.

Additionally, Khan also transformed his speeches which were directly aimed at youth as they make
upto 70% of the country’s population. Imran Khan also created a tactic in which he targeted his
election campaigns at motivating segments of the society who often cast their votes.
These factors combined paved the way for Imran khan to become 22 nd Prime Minister of Pakistan in
elections of 2018.

Leadership Traits:

Culture:
In early 2012, chairman of PTI, Imran Khan had announced to hold intra party elections.
Candidates were required to participate in the debates and win primary elections to be eligible
for a party ticket to contest in General Elections. PTI was the first political party in the 72
year history of Pakistan where an intra-party elections were conducted within. PTI with a
slogan of change, reforms and justice, holding party elections was paramount to gain public
support. On the other hand, PTI also created a system through which future leaders would
emerge. This helped PTI in establishing itself as a third force that was in direct competition to
the status quo and dynastic political parties. Further, holding intra party elections also helped
PTI in creating consensus amongst the party members which aided in formulating strategies
that are closely associated with the larger vision of the party.
Additionally, holding intra-party elections transformed the political culture and had two
significant positive impacts on the political spectrum. Firstly, more number of women started
to take part in main stream politics. Secondly, member of public belonging to middle class
also started to actively participate in politics. Prominent examples include, Zartaj Gul and Ali
Zaidi. Both had joined the PTI party who then contested intra-party elections and after
winning were awarded PTI party tickets for General elections.

1
 Socialmedia.insaf.pk. (n.d.). Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf | Social Media Team. [online]
Available at: http://socialmedia.insaf.pk/index.php [Accessed 20 Apr. 2017].
PTI has created a culture of inclusivity and diversity and has created a representation for all
segments of the society. This transformation of culture has forced other leadership of other
political parties to re-visit their decision making models.

The party was launched on 25 April 1996 with Imran Khan presenting it as a “broad-based
movement for change whose mission is to create a free society based on justice, with an
independent judiciary as its bedrock” (Khan 2012: 210). With two central themes - economic
and judicial - his demand for anti-corruption and transparency evoked an emotional response
from the vast majority and validated his charisma.
In April 1996, IK launched his party called PTI that called for Independent Judiciary and to
reform governace system that would provide justice to common man. With these two central
principles IK build on his demand for anti-corruption and transparency. These demands
echoed the feelings of the masses and validated his charisma.
On PTI’s official website, a subheading titled ‘Ideology’2 lists the party’s values, goals and
mission. The party slogan, “Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem,” envisions social harmony
across ethnic communities. This includes building a better relationship between “the
government and the people” (Insaf.pk n.d).
The personalisation of politics has been discussed more recently as a trend, in regards to
Italy and Silvio Berlusconi, the United States of America and Donald Trump, and in this
paper: Pakistan and Imran Khan.

Recently, the personality of the politicians has often been discussed in regards to Italy’s Silvio
Berlusconi and USA’s Donald Trump. In this this essay I intend to discuss Imran Khan’s.

Bennett and Sederberg (2012: 22) locate the personalisation of politics through various
conditions including: “An ethos of diversity and inclusiveness defined by tolerance for
different viewpoints and even different issues linked across loosely bounded political
networks.”

As a national cricket hero, Khan’s popularity helped him fundraise for what would become
the largest charity organisation in the country. This social project contributed to moulding
Khan’s party values and persona. His charitable work led to raising an extraordinary amount
of donations from across the globe and networking with political actors increased his
visibility as a philanthropist with a serious interest in political affairs. It can be argued that
the interaction and successful reception of his humanitarian work led to incorporating
values such as social equality and justice within his political party
Imran Khan’s popularity as a world class cricket captain helped him to successfully raise
funds for his charity organisation in Pakistan. This social project helped in creating a
successful credibility and appealing personality in the eyes of the public as he was viewed by
2
Insaf.pk. (n.d.). Ideology. [online] Available at: http://www.insaf.pk/about-us/know-
pti/ideology [Accessed 20 Apr. 2017].
majority as a philanthropist. Hence, it can be argued that his successful humanitarian projects
helped him to create a vision for his party that was more aligned with social equality and
justice movements.

Khan explains how he cultivated this image of a New Pakistan to resonate with a new
generation of political followers: “The young people of Pakistan were my main strength, and
I had seen over the years how youth across the wold had played a vital role in popular
campaigns… I wanted the students to be politicized, since dictators always try to depoliticize
people in order to maintain control” (Khan 2012: 14). Khan skilfully tailored his statements
towards younger supporters that integrated frames referencing educational reforms.
Imran Khan explains that how he formed an image of new Pakistan that echoed with the
younger generation of his followers. “The young people of Pakistan were my main strength,
and I had seen over the years how youth across the wold had played a vital role in popular
campaigns… I wanted the students to be politicized, since dictators always try to depoliticize
people in order to maintain control”. Khan very carefully chose his words and statements that
targeted youth which resonated with their feelings.

The main characteristics at play in the personalization of PTI are the techniques of
personality display
Max Weber defines charisma as: “a certain quality of an individual personality by virtue of
which he is considered extraordinary and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman,
or exceptional powers or qualities” (Jentgens 2014, 1920/1976: 124). Weber’s Eurocentric
conceptualisation of charisma explains the leadership of Khan in terms of his inclusiveness
and unique interests in political cohesion.

Max Weber defined charisma as “a certain quality of an individual personality by virtue of

which he is set apart from ordinary men and treated as endowed with supernatural,
superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. These are … regarded as
of divine origin or as exemplary, and on the basis of them the individual concerned is treated
as a leader". Imran Khan’s political leadership style in terms of his inclusiveness, fighting
against discrimination, call for equality and justice can be conceptualised under Weber’s
definition of the Charisma.

One of these platforms are news programmes that attempt to mock and question political
actors and their party’s intention. For example, panel interviews featuring Khan and other
political candidates were aired live on Dunya News3 TV channel and involves the audience
mocking the politicians’ appearances, personal life and policies. The attitude and humour
displayed by political actors can form a positive, likeable leader image. Political humour
forms part of the performative role for political actors in Pakistan and Khan had an easier
entry to the entertainment industry from his celebrity career, allowing him to gain media
3
Dunyanews.tv. (n.d.). Dunya News: Pakistan ,World ,Business, Crime, Sports, Technology,
Videos News. [online] Available at: http://dunyanews.tv/en/home [Accessed 20 Apr. 2017].
exposure during the period of political campaigning. The charismatic qualities identified by
Willner et al. (1964) vary in importance for different political actors around the world. In
South Asia, leaders are expected to engage in intense political debates against rivals, using
the media to denounce each other while pushing for electoral votes. This can take shape in
satire, publically demeaning the party leader, and holding the party accountable through
performative showbiz-style discussions. This form of political communication has
advantages as well as disadvantages – from access to free media and greater exposure to
the lack of control and being subject to editorial judgement.

In ‘An Introduction to Political Communication,’ media sociologist Brain McNair (2003:

136) suggests that in order to maintain a “positive politician-media relationship,” politicians
are required to give “the media organisation what it wants, in terms of news or entertainment,
while exerting some influence over how that something is mediated and presented to the
audience.” The 2013 General Elections shows that it was less about what Khan might do as
Prime Minister than about who the voters perceived him to be. While distinctive qualities are
attributed to effective leadership, political representation can affect voters’ perceptions on
political actors. PTI’s political communication strategy enhanced the recognition of Khan as
a charismatic leader, connecting his career achievements to his political-religious engagement

PTI’s social media team of fifteen media specialists launched an initiative that sent mobile
text messages to followers. These included real-time updates and livestreaming political
rallies on behalf of international media. “From developing the first website of any political
party, to the first official twitter and facebook channels, to making the first Mobile (iPhone
and Android) App of a political party, we have been the leaders.” In an attempt to
modernize political campaigning in Pakistan, PTI’s multimedia outreach developed the
mediated charisma of Khan by constructing a pioneering image of Khan, setting him apart
from other political actors.

Twitter emerged as an effective social media tool for PTI during the 2013 General Elections
as Khan began building his personality to appeal to the youth population and drive better
communication between the government and general population. Similar to Barack Obama’s
presidential campaign, Imran Khan led citizen relationships as the most followed Twitter user
in Pakistan. Uzma Kolsy, a journalist for The Atlantic, likened Khan’s ‘Hope’ strategy to
Obama’s ‘Yes We Can’ slogan. In 2008, Obama successfully fought for change and was
voted in as the first Black President in American history. In the same manner, Khan marketed
himself online: “Khan’s camp-- a conglomerate including foreign imports, a telecom
executive, women and members from opposition parties -- has become incredibly web savvy,
and PTI’s presence in Pakistan’s cyberspace is unparalleled” (Kolsy 2013).

In democracies, voting behaviour is generally driven by potential to deliver. However,

Pakistan is a country where it is driven by patronage and kinship. The relatively balanced
hierarchy in organizational structure of PTI distinguishes it from the vertical organizational
hierarchy of the PPP and the PML-N. Intra-party elections are a regular feature of the PTI
for internal party structure and party nominations at all levels. This unique organizational
capacity means that it is undergoing a process of institutionalization, establishing
democratic systems in the party. Objectively, it has played a role in rallying consensus and
enhancing the mobilization ability of the party.
In March 2012, the PTI announced that it would follow the American-style of nomination
process to conduct intra-party elections and introduce local pre-selection meetings at
various districts across the country. Aspiring candidates need to participate in debates and
win primary elections to be qualified for the party ticket for the provincial or National
Assembly. This unprecedentedly large intra-party election was held from October 2012 to
March 2013. More than 4 million registered party members participated in the voting. After
a long election process, the president of the PTI, the National Committee, and the contestants
for federal and provincial assemblies were successfully elected. The PTI became the first
political party to hold a nationwide large-scale intra-party election in Pakistan (Rizwan et
al. 2016: 83). As a political party with the slogan of ‘change’ and attracting voters’ support,
the party election is an important means for PTI to realize this vision. In June 2017, the PTI
party launched a large-scale intra-party election campaign again (Wasim 2017). On one
hand, through party elections, it is fully “training” the future generation of leaders. On the
other hand, through public opinion and propaganda, it established itself as a tough
competitor with “family-style” parties

Pakistan has shifted from a “two party” to a “three party” system with the introduction of
the PTI; the dynastic political tradition has been disturbed; and the concentration of seats in
provincial assemblies has been substantially reshuffled. On one hand, with the emergence of
new dynamics in the structure of the political parties, the political culture changed. On the
other hand, after the PTI came to power by challenging the core bases of status quo parties,
it gradually played a larger role in shaping the idea of institutional change.
On the social level, the inclusion of a third political force has brought about two major
changes: the participation of youth through social media and an increase in the share of
women taking part in politics. Besides structural changes, an important impact was the
introduction of young middle-class leadership into mainstream politics. Some women entered
the National Assembly for the first time and few even joined the federal cabinet. Murad
Saeed, a youngster from the Swat Valley, entered into student politics and became the federal
minister for communication and postal services. Ali Zaidi was elected to National Assembly
from Karachi, becoming minister for Maritime Affairs is another example of young middle-
class representation. The PTI phenomenon transformed Pakistan’s youth into an accessible
and arguably vital voting bloc. The plausible threat of attrition within traditional parties has
forced their leadership to consider moving towards somewhat more inclusive decision-
making. This has begun to open up more opportunities for vertical movement for all,
including the youth (Yusuf 2012).
Path to 2018 elections
No accusations of corruption

He consistently challenged two of the traditional left-and right-wing political parties: Pakistan
People’s Party (PPP) then led by Benazir Bhutto in 1990s and Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-
N) lead by Nawaz Sharif. Khan criticised the two parties for taking turns to run the government and
putting each other's corruption under the carpet. However, during these odd years, he struggled to
turn popular support into electoral gains. PTI new-born party took part in the 1997 elections and
were disappointed for not securing even a single seat in national and provincial assemblies.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf was finally off the mark with securing only one seat, Imran Khan himself
being the winning candidate, in 2002 elections. Though, it was expected that it would perform better
than before, over the issue of restoration of judiciary, PTI was among the parties who boycotted the
2008 elections (Z. Khan, 2016; Mehdi, 2013). The popular leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on
27 December 2007 leaving a leadership vacuum in PPP. Elections were held in 2008 and President
General Pervez Musharraf was forced to leave the office

But Pakistani politics is not cricket. It is far more complicated and difficult, especially when the
country’s political history has seen endemic dynastic and army rule since the 1950s.

Can the new Prime Minister unite the country and fight long-entrenched political and social evil?
Obviously, there are no simple solutions to complex issues such as the skyrocketing trade deficit,
balancing the country’s competing foreign policy priorities, and curbing discrimination against
religious minorities.

The politics of regeneration and the rise of Imran Khan:

Establishing his party in 1996, Khan was mocked by many who felt that he would not be able to
make his way in Pakistan’s strong two-party system. The Pakistan Muslim League’s (commonly
known as Nawaz - PML-N) grip over the largest province of Punjab and Pakistan’s People Party’s
(PPP) who have control over the second largest province of Sind, made it difficult for Imran Khan to
break the two-party system. In the general elections of 2013, Khan’s party only secured 33 seats in
National Assembly, yet it succeeded in forming a provincial government in the North West province
of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). Obviously, Pakistan’s Old Guards from the PML-N and PPP thought
Imran Khan would fail in KP and would therefore jeopardise his political future. Quite to the contrary
of his political opponents’ beliefs, his party-led government made the province a model for the whole
country. Unlike its predecessors, Khan’s party brought some tangible governance reforms which
greatly contributed to his popularity in the run-up of the 2018 general election in the province and in
the country as whole.

Since 2013 PTI has been on the frontline of development in KP, partnering with NGOs, social
enterprise representatives, the private sector and international development agencies. For example,
for the first time in the country’s history, the PTI led government in | 3 KP passed a police ordinance
(KPPO 2016) which legally empowered the Inspector General (IG) of police to resist any political
interference from the incumbent government. This was a significant development in a country like
Pakistan where the police are used for political victimisation. The other provinces including Sind
(ruled by PPP) failed to reform the police system even after repeated requests from the police
department. Sind’s provincial chief AD Khawaja, while criticising the old law, said, “if society expects
us to fight 21st century crime, why are we using laws from 1861 (referring to 1861 law passed by the
British colonial government to make the police a ‘force’ and not a ‘service’)?” Reducing political
interference in KP helped to make the police a more professional institution and more able to deal
effectively with terrorism.

In the health sector, Imran Khan’s led PTI government also introduced health reforms such as the
Sehat Sahulat insurance programme which will cover 70 per cent of the population in the province.
The insurance allows a household to utilise up to Rs. 540,000 for health treatment in any public and
private hospital across the province. In addition to this, the government also paid attention to ensure
the presence of doctors in the far-flung rural areas in an attempt to improve the governance of major
hospitals in the provincial capital. A recent survey conducted by the Herald in 2018, evaluating the
state of healthcare in Pakistan, showed that in the province of Sind, only 48 percent respondents
termed the health provisions in the province as average and another 44 percent termed it below
average or poor. Only 7 percent rated it above average or excellent. On the other hand, in KP 54
percent of those surveyed termed the health services in the province as average, only 18 percent
rated them below average, and 26 percent rated them above average or excellent. It is important to
note that when the survey was conducted, PPP has been in power in Sind for last five terms while PTI
has just finished its first term in KP. The provincial government of Imran Khan has also brought some
significant changes in the education sector. Recently, the government in KP rebuilt schools that had
been destroyed by radical Islamists. Bear in mind, Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel Peace Prize winner
and a Pakistani women's rights activist, was actually born in the KP province, where she opposed the
Taliban's attempts to ban girls' schooling. The PTI also recruited some 40,000 teachers through the
National Testing Service (NTS). According to a survey conducted in 2017 to assess the infrastructure
of Pakistan public schools, KP showed considerable improvement and remained ahead of other
provinces.

Path to Rule
Imran Khan’s cricketing career ended in 1992 and he soon turned an
interest in national politics into an active concern. Four years later, in 1996,
he founded the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party and installed himself as its
leader. Commonly abbreviated to PTI, the title literally translates as
Pakistan Movement for Justice.

Progression was solid for Imran: In 2002 he battled for a seat in Pakistan’s
National Assembly and served in the region of Mianwali until 2007. By
2013, things had changed dramatically and as he was voted into parliament
once again, Imran Khan’s PTI party had become the second largest in the
country. The route to power had therefore been paved and by 2018, Imran
became the nation’s Prime Minister. In terms of politics, it was a rapid rise
but it’s not likely to have taken the man himself by surprise.

Finest Moment

Imran’s career statistics show that he was among the best all-rounders in
world cricket to have ever played the game. The former Pakistani skipper
played at a time when cricket gave us the likes of Ian Botham, Kapil Dev
and Sir Richard Hadlee but for many, Imran was at the top of that particular
tree.

In 88 test matches for Pakistan, Imran averaged a respectable 37.69 with

the bat and returned six centuries but it was his exploits with the ball that
made him a fearsome competitor. In those same 88 tests, he took 362
wickets with a best of 8/58 and a highly impressive average of 22.81. His
individual stats in ODI (One Day International) cricket were comparable but
Imran Khan will be remembered mainly for his leadership of that mercurial
Pakistani side of the 1980s and early 1990s.

His respected captaincy of this team culminated in what many still feel to
be Pakistan’s finest moment on the cricket field. The 1992 World Cup
started slowly for Imran’s team and had it not been for a weather
intervention, they are likely to have been eliminated ahead of the knockout
stages. As the tournament developed, however, they gathered momentum
and made it all the way to the final where they faced old rivals England.

England started the match as favourites and with Pakistan in trouble at

24/2, it looked as if they would deliver on their perceived greater quality.
But it was Imran Khan who turned the game around, scoring 72 from 110
balls as Pakistan posted a target of 249/6.

Imran only took one wicket with the ball and was quite expensive but it was
perhaps surprising that he didn’t earn the Man of the Match award. That
accolade went to Wasim Akram as his side won by 22 runs but for many, it
was Imran’s batting by example and his inspirational leadership that saw
Pakistan take their first ever World Title in the 50 over format.

Key Qualities

For those of us who watched the Pakistani cricket teams of the 1970’s, 80s
and 90s from afar, we felt that there was huge talent in the side. There
were also some volatile times and the team liked nothing better than to
excel against true rivals such as England and Australia.

Through it all, it seemed at the time as though Imran Khan was in full
control of his emotions: He could be extremely passionate when required
but also displayed essential calmness while others around him were losing
their focus. From a distance, they would seem to be ideal qualities for
anyone pursuing a political career and together with his natural charisma,
Imran is using them to drive Pakistan forward during an important period in
their history.

Recently, Prime Minister Khan had been meeting with Saudi Arabian
Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman. Among the many items on the
agenda is the Saudis’ ongoing relationship within the China-Pakistan
Economic Corridor project. So far, Saudi Arabia are committed to Pakistan
they announcing the building a multi billion dollar oil city in the strategic port
of Gwadar and are therefore heavily invested in the region. Prime Minister
Khan has the country behind him and if persuasive personalities can play a
part in modern day politics, the relationship with the Saudis and the future
of Pakistan should be highly productive one.

Shaheen:

1) High Altitude flight

2) Sharp Vision
3) Enjoys loneliness (to enhance creativity)
4) Control over your lust and desires
5) Feed yourself that you killed (that is don’t eat from others)