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Long on promises, short on delivery

One phrase can best define the existing state of Pakistan: if the worse is over, the worst is yet to come.

Long on promises, short on delivery

A loss of faith : Prime Minister Imran Khan, who had pledged to implement corrective measures within the first three months of his tenure, failed to woo back voters AFP



Shahzad Raza

One phrase can best define the existing state of Pakistan: if the worse is over, the worst is yet to come. Since the victory of Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf (PTI) and coronation of Imran Khan as a messiah-in-chief, Pakistan has observed a series of unfortunate events. The stock market nosedived, tax collection dwindled, credibility of state institutions eroded, foreign exchange reserves shrank further, business community withheld investments and the common people suffered with higher taxes and heavier utility bills. And the last but not least, the PTI lost several key seats in the national and provincial assemblies in the recent byelections.

With its election campaign, the PTI converted the once-aloof people of Pakistan into a large group of jittery individuals who would not accept any excuse. They voted Imran Khan to power because he had promised a quick change. Selling buffalos and additional vehicles of the Prime Minister House could have been a good publicity stunt, yet it failed to impress people, who were expecting a sudden change. 

Perhaps, Khan and his team underestimated the magnitude of problems — some of which are chronic in nature. For instance, less than one million of the 200 million Pakistanis are registered taxpayers. Big businessmen and politicians evade taxes by exploiting the loopholes or bribing the collectors.

During the elections, the party ran a smear campaign against its opponents.  Khan vowed to punish the corrupt. People however didn’t understand that decades of wrongdoing could not be corrected overnight. However, that misunderstanding has started costing the PTI.

In the recent byelections, the ruling party lost four national assembly (NA) seats, which it had won in the last general elections. Khan had won the four, and had to retain only one under the law. Interestingly, the two seats he vacated were retaken by his  rivals. In another keenly watched contest, the widow of Haroon Bilour, a slain Awami National Party leader, defeated the PTI candidate. What really happened in just two months that people voted against  Khan on those two seats?

According to experts, in his ambitiousness and over confidence, Khan couldn’t gauge public sentiment and the level of their expectations. In his inaugural speech, he pledged to implement corrective measures within the first three months of his tenure. He was, perhaps, unable to grasp that the system not only needed a massive surgery but also a long-term chemotherapy to get rid of the chronic problems. Business activities have literally come to a standstill in Pakistan. Scared of getting hounded by tax authorities, the rich in Pakistan have gone into hibernation. The once-flourishing real estate sector has crumbled with everyone following the wait-and-see policy.

Before coming to power, PM Khan was advised to rely less on China and enhance economic ties with the rest of three neighbouring countries. Though he ordered to revisit all projects under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he failed to make a single concrete initiative vis-à-vis Iran, Afghanistan and, most importantly, India. Now Pakistan seeks a $10 billion bailout package from the IMF. Pakistani rulers in the past, too, had taken fresh loans to repay old debts. The present government is about to commit the same mistake. It has already slashed subsidies worth billions, which will affect the poor. It has increased the rate of indirect taxes and reduced the size of development budget without giving a roadmap of curtailing non-development expenditures, including defence spending. 

PM Khan chose Saudi Arabia, his first foreign destination after assuming power, while ignoring Iran, which can cater to the energy needs of Pakistan. The foreign policy goals of the government are vague.

The first three months of the government in power seem like the last three months of its five-year tenure. The arrest of opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif provided enough ammunition to the opposition, who is accusing the government of settling personal scores. Khan had showcased himself as the last saviour of Pakistan. He conveniently sold the slogan of ‘Now or Never’, without giving himself any margin of error or mistake. He set for himself an arduous task of cleansing the Augean stables. Would he divert the flow of river Alpheus is difficult to predict? The upcoming five years are critical for his and the country’s survival. 

— The writer is an Islamabad-based journalist

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