Irresponsible remarks

Imran seemed to be calling for a coup and threatening civil war if fresh elections not called

Former prime minister Imran Khan’s desperate quest to return to power continued with some frightening comments in an interview given to a private television channel on Wednesday. While some of his comments reflected his lack of understanding of politics, governance and administration, a few even more troubling remarks could be construed as veiled threats at the stability of the federation.

Imran seemed to be calling for a coup and threatening civil war if the incumbent government is not sacked and fresh elections not called. He criticised the state of the economy and said the military would suffer most and Pakistan would be denuclearised in exchange for a bailout if the country goes bankrupt. He went on to say that India would then increase its interference in Balochistan and lead to the country fragmenting into three parts.

But this “suicide” situation we are heading towards, as he referred to it, is not at all his fault. The former prime minister instead claimed that his government should be praised for its economic management in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic, but all other blame belongs elsewhere, because he did not enjoy absolute power as the country’s chief executive. Unfortunately, while many of his followers may think of him as a king, Pakistan is not an absolute monarchy. All democracies have systems of checks and balances, and no prime minister or president is allowed to rule by decree. But it would appear that this is exactly what Imran believes was his right, and what he needed to succeed — absolute power.

Instead, he claimed that his government was being “blackmailed” from everywhere, referring to the outsized influence that his coalition partners and the establishment had. But that is precisely why politics is often referred to as the art of compromise. There have been several successful governments around the world, and the common thread is that the leaders of the major parties in each case understood how to get things done within the system. Imran clearly doesn’t. Even now, he claims — or believes — that he had the support of 220 million people, meaning the entire country. And while there is no doubt that he was the prime minister of 220 million people, he only had the support of about 17 million people who voted for PTI. The figure comes to something around 32% of the polled votes, which, incidentally, is less than the PML-N and PPP’s combined tally in 2018.

Unlike a king, Imran’s downfall had less to do with palace intrigue and more with this. Since the election day, his popularity, like his economy, was in freefall which culminated in his departure from the Office of the PM. His failure — at fulfilling his election promises, especially those related to the economy — was hurting the election prospects of his coalition partners and even his own parliamentarians. It may be fair to consider their choice to jump ship disloyal, but from a political perspective, it was logical. Meanwhile, Imran’s failure to see the writing on the wall then, and his actions since, only fuel the belief that he is driven by delusions of grandeur.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 3^rd, 2022.

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