PTI at 25

Founded on April 25, 1996 by cricket legend Imran Khan, the ruling Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf turned 25 this past Sunday. It was Imran’s honest, philanthropic, ambitious and hardworking self that turned a ‘tonga party’ into a force to reckon with in the presence of seasoned political parties and groups. He started off with embarrassing failures, losing all five National Assembly contests in his first parliamentary elections, in 1997. But he did not give up. Five years on, in 2002, he won his first political battle, and his PTI became a one-seat party in the National Assembly. The PTI boycotted the 2008 general election, but Imran emerged as a strong voice of the people despite being out of the parliament. His incessant struggle and his never-say-die spirit did eventually pay, and today his PTI is the majority party in the Lower House of Parliament and he is the Prime Minister of Pakistan.

On the occasion of the PTI’s 25^th foundation day that loosely coincided with the party completing half-term in government, Prime Minister Imran made a televised address, recalling the ‘achievements’ and the ‘moments of success’ in the course of his long-drawn political journey. While his address was an attempt to defend his two and a half years’ performance at the helm and to justify the various steps he took as the Chief Executive of the country, it also sought to convince his voters and enliven his party workers and supporters who may not have been able to sight the ‘Naya Pakistan’ that he had promised. But as ever, Imran was at his emphatic best, narrating his ‘success story’ with self-assurance and conviction and mapping out his future course of action in an expression of his signature determination and incomparable resolve.

The PM said that during the last two and a half years, his government steered the country out of crisis and put it on the path of progress and prosperity. He claimed that the economy of the country was “now booming” because of, what he said, a current account balance in surplus, appreciating value of the rupee, soaring foreign exchange reserves, rapidly growing construction sector, and a rallying large-scale manufacturing sector. However, while the PM insisted that “people are getting confidence due to the economic growth”, one wonders which people he was talking of. Those who are forced to stand for hours in long serpentine queues — while fasting — just to secure a kilogram of sugar, and who are terrified by the thought of an impending increase in the power tariff? And what growth he was referring to. That which has led to pay-cuts and job-losses, and which is struggling to get out of the negative zone?

As always, Imran did not miss the opportunity to canvass against his ‘corrupt’ political opponents, reminding his audience of their ‘unfair’ deeds and ‘shady’ deals that would have dragged the country to bankruptcy if it had not been for his government’s successful efforts. He insisted that his party was fighting for the rule of law and justice, even though he terribly failed to carry out accountability for all and only focused on straightening his political rivals. And, as if Daska had never happened and RTS was a folklore that never merited an inquiry, he recalled how “the 2013 general election was rigged” to stop him from coming to power, and assured free and fair elections in the country under an electronic voting system.

Rising to power for a relatively new party is no mean feat. But the real test of a political party starts when it takes over the reins of the government. The PM says he is proud of the performance of his team. Whether he should or should not be will be decided by the people through the power of their vote.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 27^th, 2021.

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