The New Karzai: Too little too late

As his predecessor Burhanuddin Rabani, the incumbent Hamid Karzai wants to stay in power; no matter how far he has failed his people. And similar to Barrack Obama, Mr. Karzai’s strategy for reelection is concentrated on “change”.

Over the past seven years Karzai has widely been criticized at home and outside for his weak leadership, ineptitude and inability to curb corruption and warlordism in his government.

Mr. Karzai has wasted a very long time and too many good opportunities to rid his country of another failure.

However, the desire to remain president in the coming five years has forced Karzai to embark a garish show of change. He wants to give out the message to Afghans and to foreigners that he has changed, and can be a darling again.

In an effort to appease fast growing domestic dissidence, president Karzai has reshuffled some cabinet posts, voiced disgust over civilian causalities and fired a minister over corruption charges. Karzai has also approved the execution of criminals sentenced to death by his notoriously corrupt judiciary.

To attract the support of Pashtuns – Afghanistan’s largest ethnic group – Hamid Karzai has invited the Taliban to reconciliation and power-sharing. He has even breached limits by offering amnesty and protection to Taliban’s leadership. The U.S. has put a bounty of US$10 million over the head of Mullah Omar whom Mr. Karzai has repeatedly invited for reconciliation.

With the departure of George W. Bush, Karzai finds himself vulnerable and lonely in a post-War-On-Terror world where “change” is top policy in the agenda.

Regardless of Mr. Karzai’s ambition for reelection, his attempts to show off “change” are too late and futile. Things have already gone out of Karzai’s control.

Mr. Karzai can succeed to keep the power, but he will not reverse Afghanistan’s failure under his leadership.