The Rubicon has been crossed. The finance minister has gone on the offensive against the foremost pillar of democracy. By claiming that the parliament stands in the way of serious reform to one of the masters of the universe or at least ours, the IMF, on its home turf with cap in hand, he has cast further disrepute on our already tarnished political institutions. Just as his predecessor, Ishaq Dar made incendiary statements on the state of the Pakistan economy after becoming finance minister in 2008, Hafiz Sheikhs statements fly in the face of the political leadership. As a direct result of Dars rigid stance, Moodys immediately slashed Pakistans ratings which became kryptonite to investors who ran for cover.
However, Sheikhs statement is justified on some grounds. The RGST mess illustrates his point very well. A coalition government is prone to deadlock and must accommodate diverse interests in decision making. The opposition virulently attacks the government at every turn. Democracy remains tenuous after being throttled for years by an authoritarian fist. This is something the IMF must take into account when issuing marching orders to Pakistan. An active parliament is one of the key measures of a functioning democracy, but our parliamentarians must behave maturely. Working in a constructive, positive manner instead of scoring political points is imperative. The crisis point was reached long ago; the government cannot financially sustain itself.
To dig itself out of the hole, the cabinet is adopting increasingly more severe measures. In a move that smacks of desperation, all the managing directors of state energy firms have been sacked. This indicates they were all incompetent to begin with, a dangerous conclusion. In the wake of the dismissals, the government must rigidly adhere to a transparent process and appoint their replacements solely on merit. The progress might very well serve as a key litmus test of the states actual commitment to reform.
