Review: Born to be Hanged: Political Biography of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto

Born to be Hanged: Political Biography of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto by Syeda Saiyidain Hameed
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There was a teacher in my school. He was an Urdu teaching professor name i don't remember now. But there is one incident i cant seem to forget about him. Actually there are two incidents but the other one i don't want to discuss:D

Once during the class somehow the name Bhutto came up. I had heard the name before. The professor went into a sort of silent and nostalgic trance and started saying, "Bhutto sahab great admi the"(Bhutto was a great person). I only remember this line fully which he repeated again and again. He also used to praise and admire Bhutto greatly. I never understood the reason until I read this book although the reason for professor's such level of admiration I will never understand. Now i would say, "Bhutto sahab waqai great admi the"(Bhutto was really a great person). The thing is the school where I used to study and he used to teach was run by the Army.

I wrote somewhere that Pakistan has been out of luck with respect to leaders after Jinnah. But Bhutto had the qualities and energy of a great leader but he proved out to be too good and ultimately bad for himself. His speeches are resonant with those of great leaders. A result of his excellent academic career and his natural persona. He was gifted with something.

But he was just a human just like all of us. He made mistakes, listened and prioritized the wrong people and the level at which he was sitting those mistakes are a recipe for disaster which ultimately was the result. He left his original flock for the better but disguised pack of wolves. Petty power politics is what got him in the end. That is why I hate politics. People ready to put everything on stake for some temporary power. Even their family, friends and followers.

Nowadays I hear PPP stalwarts chanting "Bhutto zinda hai". I wouldn't agree. My friends that Bhutto is long gone. His principles have left this country. Nowhere to be seen is a man of such standards. And you all are too busy on Social Media to be or to do even a tiny fraction of what a man he was and what he was capable of doing. Then there is this stupid media spreading continuous stupidity, lies, deceit and interests all over the planet.

Pakistani politics has always been a conundrum to me. As I am reading more and more on the topic things are getting clear. It has always been a struggle for seat. Bhutto was the right person in the right country at the right time. There was a vacuum left by the 1971 defeat and Bhutto was there to fill it. There was no one else. He was born with a golden spoon, a Wadera or feudal. Pakistan has never been able to get rid of its feudal system. He received top class education. While most of Pakistanis were illiterate and couldn't even write their name on their own. Sometimes he must have had tough time with his identity, East or West. I think in the end it was just a mixture. He was also childish which proved good and bad for him. What's important is he had nothing special except a natural gift which I am sure many must have today as well. But still we lack such a personality in our country.

In the end Bhutto was source of his own destruction. He knew that. He never asked much for forgiveness during court proceedings or the judicial murder proceedings. He had some reservations about the proceedings especially the personalities involved. People also say that he never expected such result in the end and whatnot.

Highly recommended book. The author has done a great job.

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