EDITORIAL: Bringing down an incumbent government by storming the national capital is the recurring popular dream of every political opposition, but it never became a reality. The Imran Khan-led sit-in opposite the Parliament House had failed to dislodge the then Nawaz Sharif-headed coalition government. And the 'Azadi March' led by Maulana Fazlur Rehman in October 2019 fizzled out 'ignominiously' to say the least. Now Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) has pledged to send a "sea of supporters" to Islamabad to dislodge the government. The plan was announced by the PDM leadership at a public rally held in Karachi on Sunday. But when? No date has been announced. Reports from the rally venue said it was a "massive" gathering, but the most keenly listened - and selectively reported by media - was the speech of PML-N's self-exiled leader Nawaz Sharif. Others' take on the present government's performance was what we hear and read in newspapers every day. There was nothing new in it, except the message 'we are back in the play'.
Out of its five-year term the PTI government has completed three and is sanguine about the remainder of its term. Given its inexperience in running the government and a couple of other negative factors, including Covid-19, it couldn't do better. But did it ever miss any golden opportunity that came in the way of the nation? There can be no clear answer to this question. However, what strikes one's mind is its leadership's utopian mindset. There is a whole list of off-the-cuff formulations about how to catch up with others and recover the wasted time. But realities on the ground remain the same. In fact, the PTI government could have done a bit better if it had not firmly stood by the side of the National Accountability Bureau (NAB). The NAB did recover billions of looted money, but it also acted as a brake on the economic growth of the country, authenticating the proven reality that statehood and morality do not go hand in hand. By following Reverent Desmond Tutu's 'forget and forgive the past' the national economy must have done better. How the Pakistan Democratic Movement leadership looks at it there was no signal from its platform in Karachi. Doesn't the PDM leadership realize that the net sufferers of their march on Islamabad will be its residents, and certainly not the government? If it is certain that the PTI government has disappointed people then they wouldn't vote for it in 2023. That is how democracy plays out.
Out of the tune at the PDM rally however was the accusation aired by Nawaz Sharif in his address from London via a video link. He severely criticised "a few generals and elite class", accusing them of hijacking the country's democratic system. "In today's circumstances it's a crime to stay silent ... we stayed silent when the elected prime minister was thrown out," according to him. Maulana Fazlur Rehman, too, criticised the "powerful military establishment" for its alleged interference in politics. "If the army interferes in politics, it goes against the defined rules of the Constitution," he said. Of course, over the last few months, particularly in the context of Azad Jammu and Kashmir elections, the opposition has talked of such interference, but never so bluntly. This is a serious issue and must be looked into by the concerned quarters. Given the daunting geostrategic challenges Pakistan confronts today any attempt aimed at maligning the armed forces is not a fair game. If the opposition has anything irrefutable against military interference in hand it should have gone to the court of law instead of making it a stuff for a public meeting.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2021
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