Editorial: Mandate for defiance and hope

Pakistan is staring at prolonged political instability and chaos at a time when it is already steeped in multiple crises

An unmistakable message from Pakistani voters in the national elections is one of defiance and hope; defiance in the face of unprecedented oppression and manipulation of the institutions and hope to save and preserve the democratic will. For the first time in the country’s history, a clear indictment was handed out to the military establishment which used all the tricks in the bag, as it always did, to tweak the processes and influence the outcome in favour of a political dispensation that has its blessings. The mandate was a clear rejection of the devious designs of the army to impose its will. In what felt like a déjà vu played out in a loop, the Rawalpindi Generals went out of the way to keep Imran Khan, the army’s fall guy, out of contention. However, by electing independents, backed by jailed former prime minister’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in large numbers — in fact they have emerged as the single largest bloc —, the voters have clearly spoken out their mind and showed extraordinary resilience in overcoming the obstacles deliberately created by the establishment. Despite its dubious international image of controlling the civilian leadership at will, the army always commanded respect from the common man. But the latest mandate reflects, for the first time, an unambiguous public disapproval of the army’s interference in civilian affairs. As the polls have thrown up a hung Parliament, with no clear winner, Pakistan is staring at prolonged political instability and chaos at a time when it is already steeped in multiple crises impacting its political, social and economic spheres.

The split verdict has set off wheeling and dealing among contenders to secure the required numbers for government formation. The PTI-backed independent candidates have won 102 seats while Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) and Bilawal Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have secured 73 and 54 seats respectively. In his premature victory speech, three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, who has the army’s backing, indicated his willingness to form a coalition government and dispatched his emissaries to other political camps for negotiations. The PTI, on the other hand, has threatened to launch agitation against attempts to steal the public mandate. The attempts to subvert the PTI were blatantly executed — right from the pre-poll phase to the election day irregularities and the post-poll counting process. The party’s leadership was jailed, its workers were hounded, its electoral symbol taken away and even the independent candidates it backed were not allowed to campaign. However, these machinations ultimately backfired. Imran, who was ousted as Prime Minister through a no-confidence motion in 2022, remains the country’s most popular leader. His arrest in May last year had sparked nationwide violent protests. Confident of forming the government at the Centre, his party has ruled out forging an alliance with its main rivals, PML (N) and PPP.

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