THERE are clear indications that people of Pakistan are now completely fed up with the tug-of-war among political forces as well as institutions, which has inflicted unparalleled harm on the national economy, threw more people below the so-called poverty line, deprived masses of the benefits of some good policies of the successive governments, weaken institutions, undermined the goal of good governance and supremacy of law and bruised image of the country in the comity of nations. There is also a growing impression that the parties have least commitment to the cause of democracy and the Constitution and their infighting is solely aimed at grabbing more and more powers.
It is a matter of concern that the country is facing an uncertain situation for the last many years due to political polarization, which has diverted attention from the real issues, complicating economic woes of the people. There is an unfortunate tendency of not respecting mandate of the people given to the parties in the general elections. People gave mandate to the PML(N) in 2013 elections but this was challenged by the opposition throughout its tenure and as a result the party could not implement its development agenda with the required peace of mind. Allegations were levelled in 2018 that the election was stolen after breakdown of the Result Transmission System (RTS) of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). Though PTI had full backing of the establishment but it could not deliver as it miserably failed to take other political parties along and they exploited the situation on the first available opportunity to dislodge the Government through a vote of no-confidence. The entire process of the no-confidence was well within the parameters of the Constitution and democratic norms but a narrative was built that the Government was removed through a foreign-inspired conspiracy, a charge that could not be established so far. Controversies also surround the February 2024 elections and allegations of rigging have been made a constant theme of the public debate to discredit the elected Government and create obstacles in the smooth working of the system. We have been emphasizing in these columns that the allegations of rigging notwithstanding, almost all political parties have got their share of power in one form or the other at the Centre and in the provinces. Therefore, instead of leg-pulling, they should learn to co-exist and focus on delivering for the masses. No doubt, political rivals get the opportunity to rule as a result of their power struggle but discontinuation of policies and programmes and focus away from development have obstructed any change for the better in the lives of the people. Problems of the general public have remained as before whether it is PTI, PPP or PML(N) is in power as people witnessed cuts developmental budgets, massively increased electricity and gas tariffs, jacked up taxes massively, could not create adequate employment opportunities, closed their eyes to corruption, adopted hostile attitude towards pensions and closed institutions in the name of right-sizing. Bitter decisions were taken on the plea that the country needs to lessen its reliance on foreign loans through increased mobilization of internal resources. Anyhow, people have rendered great sacrifices in terms of price-hike and additional burden of taxes and now, it is believed, good days are ahead as the economy is showing some improvement. The back-breaking inflation is coming down, State Bank of Pakistan is lowering the policy rate, foreign exchange reserves are stable, remittances by overseas Pakistanis are peaking and different sectors of the economy are attracting foreign investment which would go a long way in improving financial and economic health of the country as well as its people. Therefore, it is imperative for all political parties to shun their self-centred agenda and instead prioritize national interests. They must unite for Pakistan.
