The glittery crown is far too precious to pay as a price for stability in the country even if one’s followers have positioned him at a high pedestal. At a time when the entire country would have joined hands and rooted for its fast-plunging economy, a call issued by the former ruling party to do the homework for the upcoming general elections does give a whiff of skewed priorities.
The deeply-troubled economy cannot afford this constant obsession with pulling political punches below the belt. With the rupee breaking its own records of hitting rock bottom and no signs of inflation backing down, Pakistan is nearing the edge of a meltdown with each passing day. Adding more fury to the fire has been the literally dysfunctional role of the parliament, which can best be described as a well-glorified public facade to mask our crumbling house of cards. For now, PTI’s chief Imran Khan is cracking the whip from Punjab as the actual chief minister has not even put up a show of holding the baton. He appears determined to undermine the ruling PML(N) and its citadel in the centre, without paying any regard to the havoc it would unleash upon the country, its finances or its masses. Inviting a caretaker setup when the never-before-seen strict conditions of the IMF are the talk of the town would be akin to shooting Pakistan in the foot.
Sans any mandate or political support, how would the executive be expected to go through the rescue package? Are the political parties cheering for a new breeze simply buying time so that the in-betweener can do their dirty bidding, helping them climb up the power rungs on their shoulder? James Carville’s revolutionary catchphrase, “It’s the economy, stupid,” should be hammered into the collective conscience so that every Pakistani can better understand what is actually at stake here. Can we allow our political ambitions to cloud our financial acumen and push us toward the hellhole Sri Lanka has found itself in? If it takes 75 years for a country to realise it needs funds in its pocket and roots entrenched deep within to be considered seriously by the big leagues, may Lord have mercy on us because we are in no such mood!
All this is not to say that a democratic country should sit idle and not let the people elect their true voices to sit in the echelons of power and make crucial decisions for them. But do we really need to pander to the ideals on the day the world threatens to burn and the ill-equipped fire engine is fast losing its water supply?
