SPEAKER National Assembly Raja Pervaiz Ashraf has called for a dialogue between all the political parties and expressed sorrow that the country could not progress due to the practice of bringing up issues of the past. In an interview on Sunday, he said we should not remain stuck in the past and instead should move forward.
No doubt, the Speaker belongs to the PPP and his views necessarily mirror the overall policy and approach of the party but his call is weighty as dialogue is the only answer to the problems confronting the country. It seems politicians have still not learnt lessons from their past mistakes and they are still engaged in infighting because of their self-centred strategies. The doors for dialogue remained shut during the entire tenure of the PTI Government while its leadership focused more on confrontation and agitation than meaningful talks during the period of the coalition government. Now again, all parties are emphasizing the need for a free and fair election and a level playing field but the objective would remain elusive in the absence of serious dialogue among political players. The Election Commission is committed to holding transparent elections but it would succeed only if there is sincere cooperation from all parties and consensus on a mode of conduct. There are no permanent foes and friends in politics and it is the responsibility of the national political leadership to initiate a broad-based dialogue as part of the efforts to promote national unity.
