The threat of the no-confidence move is turning out to be a double-edged sword. If passed, the PTI government will be sent home before completing its tenure. If the opposition fails despite having tried all the tricks of the trade and creating a hype, it would lose much of its credibility. Both sides have cared little for their avowed principles during the fight. The PM lost the moral high moral ground by seeking help from political leaders he had directly accused of corruption and contacting those he had dropped from the list of close associates for similar reasons. Imran Khan accepted blindly all the terms dictated by the IMF like raising power rates and petroleum prices, caring little for the common man’s suffering. Realising that he might have to go for elections ahead of the normal schedule, he made a U-turn, threw the IMF’s cautions to the wind and announced reduction in petrol prices and electricity charges besides an interest-free loan programme worth Rs 407 billion. He has thus spent billions to meet an immediate political challenge, ignoring imminent economic consequences.
The two major opposition parties who have all along opposed any role for the establishment in politics have reportedly maintained a secret liaison with those who matter. Even the PDM chief was reluctant to contradict these reports. The opposition is convinced that its no-confidence move would be successful despite no clear commitment of support either from the government’s allies or the PTI’s dissidents. Even those in PML(N) who maintained that a no-trust move could never succeed in a hybrid democracy have suddenly become supporters of the move. The opposition has however kept its cards close to its chest while claiming that it stands united and would succeed in toppling the PTI’s government even without the PML(Q)’s votes. A minority comprising more cautious opposition leaders has however kept an escape hatch open if things don’t work out. The government’s fall was imminent, they maintain, provided no one interfered. Many would call it an excuse for shoddy groundwork. The opposition has thus put its credibility on line.
There have been no talks about the government that will be made after the current one falls. It is saddening that despite nearly four years out of power, the opposition parties have failed to jointly work out an outline of a common economic programme, a neutral accountability system, and a policy to ensure media freedom.
