LONG marches on the part of political parties have unfortunately become a norm in our country which whether or not bring any fruitful results for them do greatly disturb the daily life of the people, especially the residents of the twin-cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad have been the worst sufferers in recent years.
PTI Chairman Imran Khan has now announced his much-touted long march from Friday to push for his demand for early elections.
The very tone and tenor of the PTI Chairman whilst announcing the long march at a news conference in Lahore appeared to be somewhat sober and calm as he stated that the march will be peaceful and held at a place allowed already by the courts.
This suggests the PTI Chairman only wants to hold a gathering in the federal capital to demonstrate the support it enjoys in the masses.
Protesting or holding demonstrations in fact is a democratic right and we really accept and respect it but whilst doing so, the rights of other people must also not be trampled.
We really appreciate the PTI Chairman when after the ECP’s decision in Toshakhana case, he asked his workers to call off the protests, sensing the difficulties of the people in their movement.
We expect that he will continue to move ahead with the same posture. Instead of staging the sit-in in the capital which will cause trouble to the people, he should end the march after addressing the gathering.
The country is already faced with immense economic problems which have been further complicated by the devastating floods.
Hence, better sense must prevail and decisions must be taken whilst rising above personal political interests.
Announcement of the long march also indicates that President Arif Alvi’s efforts for a negotiated solution have failed to reach any positive conclusion.
Polarization in our society is already touching dangerous heights and any untoward incident in the long march which may be perpetrated by our enemy can further fan it-something which we cannot afford.
We therefore will suggest the government to engage with the PTI leadership to discuss the way forward.
For the sake of the country, both sides need to demonstrate flexibility in their respective stances.
