News Analysis |
The leaders of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) visited the PML-N’s leader Ayaz Sadiq in Islamabad on Sunday. The delegation of the PTI visited the PML-N leader to invite him to the party chairman Imran Khan’s oath-taking ceremony for the post of prime minister, which is to take place on August 18. PTI’s Fawad Chaudhry and Asad Qaiser ─ the party’s nominee for NA speaker ─ spoke to media along with Mr. Sadiq and said that the PTI was interested to work with all other political parties in the country to counter all the challenges Pakistan is facing today.
Mr. Qaiser also said that his party wants a “working relationship” with parties in the country. It is important to mention here that newly-elected MNAs are going to take oath today. The Prime Minister-in-waiting Imran Khan is likely to take the oath of his post on August 18th.
PTI to Address the Reservations of the Opposition
The PTI leaders also said that the party and its leader were willing to address all the reservations of the opposition parties with regard to the General Elections 2018. The opposition parties have alleged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) of massive rigging and demanded to declare the results of the General Election “null and void”. Since the Multi-Party Conference (MPC) was not very well-organized and the interests of the participants were not the same, the conference failed to yield the expected outcomes.
Opposition parties, Their Interests, and the Real Loser
Pakistan’s mainstream political parties, PPP and PML-N, have reservations about the outcomes of the General Elections 2018 but both parties have taken different paths to voice against the alleged rigging. The PPP has said that it does not reject the complete results outright rather it has questions about the electoral process. Later on, the PPP Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said that his party rejects election results but, at the same time, the PPP is going to play a role of an exemplary opposition in the national assembly.
Since the PPP has managed to get simple majority in Sindh and it is interested to form a government in the province. Hence, PPP can’t afford to boycott the National Assembly. Similarly, PML-N has gotten 129 seats in Punjab. And it is interested to form government in the province. “In Punjab, PML-N has 127 [129] seats, PTI has 118, while 27, who are independent, share our ideology.
PTI is likely to face an organized opposition by the self-declared liberal, ethnic, and conservative political parties. It is yet to be seen that how the PTI and its leaders deal with the situation and turn their dreams into reality.
Our people are in touch with them,” said Hamza Shehbaz, son of PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif. This clearly indicates that the PML-N is putting pressure on PTI to let it form the government in the province. Since the PTI leader Naeemul Haq has said “We have required numbers to form the government in Punjab. We are also in touch with the independent candidates, with whom we will form the government.” This is unacceptable for PML-N at the moment.
The real loser is Maulana and his allies in the KPK who have no other option except to protest and disrupt the political process in the country. It is, however, evident that the divided MPC (headed by MMA president) won’t make any difference since the elections were ‘free and fair’ as declared by many Pakistani commentators and observers and Imran Khan has had popular acceptance. Meanwhile, PPP has decided to form the government in Sindh and play a role of opposition in the National Assembly.
Read more: Newly elected MNA’s take oath for third consecutive democratic government
The Challenge Ahead
Although the PTI is willing to have a working relationship with other political parties in the country, yet there are several challenges the party is about to face. Since the PTI has an ideology to challenge the status quo and transform Pakistan’s parochial political culture into a participant one, the parties of status quo consider it to be a direct threat on their respective political ideologies and norms they generally practice.
PTI is likely to face an organized opposition by the self-declared liberal, ethnic, and conservative political parties. It is yet to be seen that how the PTI and its leaders deal with the situation and turn their dreams into reality.