While all eyes stayed focused on Islamabad, the situation in Punjab continued to drift. Though Sardar Usman Buzdar continued to remain Chief \Minister, his resignation has created a vacuum that needs a successor to be elected. At the same time, Sardar Usman’s posting of a new Chief Secretary and new IGP continues to be the subject of litigation. Now that there has been a new Prime Minister elected in Islamabad, the new Governor may find that his time in office is limited (already his counterparts in KP and Sindh have resigned). The new PM will want a Governor willing to summon the Punjab Assembly earlier than the 16th, a date originally set to allow Ch Pervez Elahi the opportunity to create a majority on his side. With the end of the Imran government, the purpose of putting forward the election becomes irrelevant. Indeed, Ch Parvez should have lost all desire to become CM, because even for a smooth and experienced political operator like him, the goals he would have hoped to accomplish under Mr Khan seem now out of reach.
Whatever the calculations that might have led Ch Parvez to believe that he could wrangle a majority out of the present House, it now seems that they have been rendered irrelevant. Therefore, it only makes sense to allow events to take their natural course, and for the Punjab Assembly to be allowed to elect a new chief executive for the province.
The only thing stopping Ch Pervez from letting the election proceed would be a desire to emulate the example at the Centre, and making every step of the way as difficult as possible. Not only would this be particularly pointless after the departure of Mr Khan, but it also goes against the political style of Ch Parvez, as well as his family. Besides, further delays are only prolonging the sufferings of the people of Punjab. That should count for something, shouldn’t it?
