AS political instability continues to haunt the country, different stakeholders float proposals aimed at promoting the goal of national reconciliation, which is, of course, the need of the hour.
Latest is the suggestion emanating from veteran politician and leader of Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PKMAP) Mahmood Khan Achakzai, who has expressed willingness to engage in talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif regarding the formation of a unity government. Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, Achakzai, head of Tehreek-e-Tahafuz Ayeen (TTAP), claimed there was “constitutional crisis, institutional corruption and political victimization” and therefore, it is not time to hurl abuses at each other but to unite for the country’s sake.
No saner element would oppose the spirit of the proposal in view of the persistent political instability and its implications for the system as well as the economy of the country. However, there is a big question mark about feasibility of the idea because of the prevailing tense environment and lack of trust among stakeholders. Achakzai has not elaborated on the details of the proposal – whether he wants formation of the unity government within the existing set-up or visualizes fresh elections as a first step towards realization of the goal. He has also not clarified whether the top PTI leadership was on board and what was the guarantee they would accept his mandate for talks because in the past as well he was authorized to initiate contacts and dialogue with the government but later on the PTI leadership backtracked. The PKMAP leader invariably knows that except for Imran Khan, other senior leaders of the party want talks with the government and the powerful circles but the veto power within the party is preventing any progress towards this end. There is no denying the fact that the unity government will be an ideal arrangement to address challenges facing the country on security, economy and foreign affairs fronts. However, the tendency to have absolute power is one of the major hurdles in the way of realization of this dream. How can a unity government succeed when neither the Government nor the Opposition is willing to accept the mandate of others?
Both President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif have, time and again, demonstrated their preference for national reconciliation, accommodating other parties in power sharing arrangements both at the centre and the provinces. The PPP, in its previous term, embraced its staunchest rival – the PML(Q) and PML(N) is heading a coalition now with open offers to other parties to join. It is also known to all that after the last general election, the PPP’s first preference was a coalition with the PTI but it joined hands ultimately with the PML(N) in the face of lukewarm response from the PTI. It is also no secret that the PTI, because of its popularity, was never inclined towards any cooperation or working relationship with other parties. It repeatedly showed no interest in dialogue whether the party was in power or in the opposition. In this backdrop, the proposal for the formation of a unity government seems to be a non-starter and at best is aimed at playing with the galleries. Otherwise too, why would the coalition parties agree to such a proposition when their parliamentary strength has improved significantly following the verdict of the Supreme Court in reserved seats case. Apart from their increased numerical strength in provinces, these parties now have a two-third majority enabling them to amend the Constitution if needed. Therefore, instead of indulging in political gimmicks, senior politicians like Mahmood Khan Achakzai should play their role in lowering the political temperatures and persuading all the stakeholders to cooperate in stabilizing the country. We have been emphasizing in these columns that the existing arrangement is ideal in the sense that almost all parties have a share in power either at the Centre or in a province. Instead of pursuing the goal of grabbing absolute powers, they should respect each others’ mandate and compete in delivery. As all the major parties – PML(N), PPP and PTI have their governments in the Centre, Punjab, Sindh and KP, they should strive to excel in governance as comparative performance is likely to play a dominant role in the next general election.
