Seventy-five years after Independence, the Pakistani state is far from giving its people what they have always craved – a true democracy. Every few years, Pakistan’s leader claim they will give the people what they want – but they get drawn into the games of the establishment and move away from their goals.
Imran Khan claims his party will provide true justice to Pakistanis but instead he and his advisors prefer to subvert the democratic process. As long as the establishment supported Khan, Khan and his party supported the army. Now that the establishment does not support his party, Khan and his supporters are attacking the army.
Khan believes his popularity is waning, so he wants to hold elections right away. If he cannot force general elections, then he will force provincial ones. Nothing is about what is right for the country, it has all to do with what is good for Khan. If he truly cared about Pakistan, he would try to reduce the political instability so that the economy stabilized but narcissists don’t think beyond themselves.
The ruling coalition has its own challenges. As columnist Zahid Hussain notes “The PDM government’s balance sheet has certainly not been encouraging. The fractious coalition does not seem to have the capability to take the country out of its difficulties. Its failure to take rational decisions has deepened the economic crisis. The internal discord has further undermined its ability to improve and course correct.”
