EDITORIAL: The 11-party opposition alliance, Pakistan democratic movement (PDM), staged yet another rally on Monday, this time in Multan, defying government attempts to stop the gathering amid a deadly Covid-19 surge. Speaking on the occasion, PML-N leader Maryam Nawaz repeated her usual personal rather than political grouse against Prime Minister Imran Khan, demanding that he resign before the PDM takes "any decision." Hogging the limelight as the current head of PDM, JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman yet again berated against the PM claiming that "we forced you to escape from Multan today [for trying to stop the rally] and tomorrow we will force you to leave the government." And following the tradition of the divine dynastic right to leadership common to all other parties on that platform, the PPP's Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, made her debut appearance at the rally, reminding the people of her mother and maternal grandfather's political struggles to establish her leadership credentials. Like her brother, party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, she too promised to get rid of the "selected government."
The opposition parties or private individuals, of course, are within their democratic rights to hold anti-government demonstrations. But these are not normal times. Presently; the country faces a lethal pandemic. On the day the PDM held its Multan public meeting the Covid-19 had claimed 40 lives taking the overall death toll to well over 8,000 while another 2,046 patients remained in critical condition. And to prevent further spread of the virus 5,082 smart lockdowns were in place all across the country. Given the situation, the PDM should have called off the public meeting of its own volition. Instead throwing caution to the wind they insisted on holding the event come what may. After the government closed down the original venue, the Qasim Bagh Stadium, they held the mass gathering at Ghanta Ghar Chowk. Maryam Nawaz along with her associates and Maulana Fazlur Rehman had not bothered even to wear a facemask. The signal that sent to their supporters and sympathizers was not take the novel coronavirus seriously.
Unfortunately, the media has not acted with a sense of responsibility towards the people, either. Most of them have covered the event in laudatory terms, such as that the PDM held the rally against all odds, and describing it as a power show, instead of a super spreader show that it actually was. Regardless of what the government says or does, anyone following the news knows by now how contagious and life threatening is the coronavirus. Journalists at least are expected to trust what the scientists are saying rather than following politicians' intent on serving their short-term interests at the expense of public well-being. In any case, the government is not going to go anywhere. The turbulent political history of this country shows that opposition protest rallies have never succeeded in ousting a government unless backed by extraneous forces. Skeptics therefore suggest the PDM insistence on holding large public gatherings is a deliberate decision to increase the incidence of Covid-19, thereby undermining the economy to weaken the government. That may be an unfair view, but the PDM plan to go ahead with the next mass gathering in Lahore betrays an interest in doing just that.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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